Capturing Time
by alicenotinwonderland
Summary: Index added! Looking through a photo album is always a wonderful experience. These oneshots feature stories centered around photographs of characters taken at various points in the Harry Potter timeline. First place in Morning Lilies' Photo Album Competition! Chapter 16: Alice realises whether her friendship with Lily is more important than her infatuation with James.
1. Index

This is an index to help you find your favourite characters. I hope you enjoy reading these stories as much as I did writing them. And don't forget to leave me a review! :)

1. Make a Wish - Ginny wishes Harry was around for her sweet sixteen. A little peek into her mind on her birthday. Ginny/Harry with a cameo by the twins.

2. Normal Family - Scorpius wishes his family was as normal and cool as the Weasley-Potters. Draco tries to make his wish come true with some hilarious results when accepts an invitation to lunch with the Weasley-Potter clan!

3. Christmas is a Time for Family - Harry reflects on his unofficial adoption into the Weasley family and how much it means to him. Mostly Harry with some Weasley fun.

4. Memories - Arthur remembers his brother and the events that started his fascination with aeroplanes.

5. Family Reunion - Charlie comes home after a long time and is apprehensive about feeling left out in his own family, what with all their new girlfriends and children. Will he be pleasantly surprised when he sees them though?

6. Acting Our Age - Harry, Ron and Hermione have some immature, childish fun - a rare moment of happiness in an otherwise dark fourth year.

7. Christmas Presents - Bill and Fleur share their anxiety about the war and Bill tries to cheer his wife up with the perfect Christmas present. Bill/Fleur fluff!

8. There's No Logic In Love - Hermione reflects about why she loves Ron. Theirs is a relationship that most would think would logically fail with the amount of fighting they do. But Hermione realises logic makes no sense in matters of the heart.

9. One Little Lie - Narcissa's thoughts in that moment before she lies to the Dark Lord about Harry Potter's death. What does she feel before possibly changing the way the war would end?

10. Starting Over - Andromeda and Narcissa might have a chance to rebuild their relationship with Bellatrix no longer around to spoil things. Will both of them make the right choices this time?

11. A Promise - 'Forever' was never just a word for James and Lily. It was always a promise.

12. Living Nightmares - Draco Malfoy reflects on the days when he didn't have to bear the burden of the Dark Mark.

13. Mummy's Here - Hannah Abbott finds comfort in knowing her mother will always be there for her - even in death.

14. Her World - Molly and Arthur talk about the happiness of growing old together on their fiftieth anniversary.

15. Stolen Hearts - Fred Weasley II deals with his crush on Rita Skeeter.

16. Lily Evans' Best Friend - Alice is infatuated with James but he's going out with her best friend, Lily. Will she choose her friendship with Lily over her crush on James?


	2. Make A Wish

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><p>It was Ginny's sixteenth birthday. She had never been unhappier on any other day.<p>

Ten days had passed since Bill and Fleur's wedding. The house felt so empty now. Bill, Charlie, Percy, the twins, Ron, Hermione…everyone was gone.

Harry was gone. He had celebrated almost every one of her birthdays for the last years with her.

This was supposed to be _her _birthday. _Her_ day. She was supposed to get whatever she wanted. She didn't want to spend it alone. She took out a small scrapbook from her trunk and flipped through it like she did on every birthday. Ginny didn't keep a diary but this scrapbook was a record of her favourite memories, and with time, what kind of memory she classified as a favourite also changed. She blushed at the first few pages. When she had been younger, she had been rather…obsessed with Harry. Every news article and photo of him she could find was in the album. She came to a photo of Harry blushing fiercely as a fat Cupid sat on his knees, plucking a harp. Colin had taken that photo. She had embarrassed Harry more than herself that day. She smiled sadly at a more recent picture of herself and Harry sitting under the beech tree by the lake, fingers just barely touching.

Ginny had always been strong and sensible. They were traits she had acquired from living with six brothers who teased her all through her childhood. But she would never admit that she had a soft spot for romance.

Just a few months ago, she had let herself dream. She had been looking forward to the next February. She had dreamed up exactly how Valentine's Day would go. Harry would ask her out to Hogsmeade in that shy, quiet way of his. He would turn up right on time and blush the minute he saw her. They would hold hands and stroll down the grounds, talking about nothing important. They would bypass Madam Puddifoot's completely, laughing about their experiences in the nauseating little shop. She would buy him Chocolate Frogs in Honeydukes. She knew he liked them just for the cards. He wanted to know so much about the Wizarding world. They'd spend a while in Zonko's and Spintwitches before finally heading to the Three Broomsticks. They would be just like any other couple having a nice time. He would give her the perfect present and tell her he loved her and –

Ginny shook her head violently. This was no time to think of such things. There was a war going on. She was supposed to be a tough, independent leader, not some lovesick teenager.

But it was her _birthday_.

Why couldn't You-Know-Who have attacked tomorrow? He had ruined all the plans she'd had for her the day. "Another reason to kill him," she muttered savagely.

She had been dreaming of this day since her eleventh birthday. Of course, she'd grown up. She hadn't given much thought to such silly things for quite a few years. But ever since she and Harry had started going out – something she'd thought would only ever be a childhood dream – she'd started to feel more like her eleven year old self every time she thought about him.

She had imagined this day to be special. Balloons and streamers all over the kitchen, a nice big cake with blue frosting, candles in the same shade of green as Harry's eyes, a table piled high with presents, the topmost being Harry's…she'd had every detail planned out. She would have worn that dress Fleur had bought her. She hated dresses but she would have made an exception. If nothing else, she _definitely_ trusted Fleur's taste in clothes.

She shook her head again. What was _wrong_ with her? She'd never been so…so…_girly_ before. There was no time to waste building castles in the air! Harry was out there trying to save innocent people. What right did she have to complain about him not being there for her birthday? She should be planning how to help the fighters from Hogwarts. She had to be brave and tough. She wasn't a little girl anymore. She couldn't spend her time dreaming about the Boy-Who-Lived. She couldn't spend her time dreaming about fairytale endings. After all, they'd be lucky to have an ending at all!

But she was tired of being strong for everyone. She _wanted_ to dream. She didn't want to fight in a war. There was no happiness, no smiling or laughing, no joking around anymore. There seemed like there was nothing that was worth fighting for any longer. She didn't want to know that she or someone she loved could die at any moment. She was tired of worrying about everyone. She wanted someone else to worry about her, to take care of _her_. She just wanted to be a normal teenager hoping to celebrate her birthday with the perfect guy. She wanted to be given red roses, hearts and chocolate and jewelry like every girl, deep inside, did. She wanted Harry to blow out the candles with her and grin sheepishly as he handed her a badly wrapped present and shared a piece of cake with her. She wanted to have a _normal sixteenth birthday!_

"Ginny?" Fred and George opened her door. "May we come in?"

"You never ask," Ginny said.

Fred smiled. "Yeah, but now you're all grown up. We would be violating your privacy."

"Plus, we haven't forgotten the Bat Bogey Hex from the last time we barged in without knocking," added George. They sat down on either side of her.

"Can you believe she's sixteen, George?" Fred asked, eyeing his sister critically. "Still seems like a midget in a ratty blue nightgown to me."

"Yeah, she's just a little runt pretending to be all grown up."

Ginny punched them both. "No teasing on birthdays," she said sternly although she couldn't contain a small smile.

Fred sighed, rubbing his arm where she'd punched him. "No, you're obviously still the same fierce Ginny." He smiled fondly at her. "It seems like just yesterday you were calling us in to check for monsters under your bed."

"You convinced Ron to hide under my bed the next night, if I remember correctly." Ginny giggled. "Poor thing, he got pummeled by my pillows!"

The twins chortled. "Well we managed to raise one of you to be daring at any rate," shrugged George. "You used to love cookies. We used to sneak into the kitchen with Charlie every night to steal some, remember?"

Ginny smiled at the memory of standing on Charlie's shoulders so she could grab a few cookies from the jar on the high shelf.

"You loved fairytales too. "You always wanted to be the Prince or the Brave Knight. You always thought they were more fun." Fred ruffled her hair.

"I liked being the Princess sometimes too," Ginny murmured.

"That's true," George looked nostalgic. "You had to grow up sometime. We used to forget you were a girl quite often. You were always so spunky and independent, but every night, you used to be a shy, scared little girl coming to her brothers to help her sleep."

The twins looked at her, identical sad smiles on their faces. "Now you can take care of yourself. You don't need to snuggle in with us when the wind makes creepy noises or the branches rub against your window," Fred said softly. "You're not our baby sister anymore."

"Why are you two so sentimental today?" Ginny asked curiously.

"Because," said George, "you don't need us around anymore. You're this fierce, smart, daring woman now. You're no longer the little girl we could cuddle and protect. You're just as capable of protecting yourself now as anyone else. We miss that little Ginny."

"I wish I didn't have to be fierce or smart or daring. I wish this war had never happened! I often wonder what life would have been like without it. My whole adolescence is being ruined by a psychopath. I just wish life had been normal!" Ginny burst out.

"You've always been fierce and daring, Ginny. You would have been like this even if there wasn't a war," Fred told her gently.

"What about smart?"

"Well…"

Ginny hit him.

"There, you see? You won't stand for any nonsense," George pointed out. "You wouldn't have been any different, war or not."

"I just sometimes feel like there's no point. There's no point because no matter how brave I am, it doesn't seem like it'll help anyone. No one believes I can help. _I_ don't believe I can help. I'm just a hindrance to everyone…even Harry," she sighed.

"That's not true. Everyone knows Harry's only trying to take care of you and protect you by leaving you behind," Fred assured her. "He's actually the reason we're here, by the way."

"Harry figured you'd be a little down on your birthday with no one around to celebrate it. That's why he left you a little present to cheer you up," George said.

Fred pulled out a little box, wrapped in silver. Ginny took it and ripped the paper off quickly. She lifted the lid, eager to see what Harry had got her and –

"OUCH!"

Fred and George rolled around with laughter as she emerged from the smoke, sporting a beautiful black eye. She threw the box with the punching telescope at Fred, glaring at both of them. She couldn't help joining in the laughter herself – once she'd finished screaming and thumping them both, of course.

Fred pulled out a second box wrapped in red and gold once they all stopped laughing. "Harry really did leave you a present. Come down once you're done." The twins ruffled her hair affectionately once more and left.

Ginny smiled at the Snitch – patterned paper covering the box. She unwrapped it delicately. Harry was _definitely_ getting better at gift-wrapping. A letter lay on top of an old photograph inside. She smiled nostalgically at the photo. Percy was at the extreme left and seemed to be lecturing the twins who were rolling their eyes, both wearing pattern-changing party hats. Her dad was about to cut a cake with eleven candles stuck in it while she held his hand. The twins were on her other side, then Ron who was staring at the cake, evidently hungry. On his other side, almost at the edge of the picture was Harry. He looked hesitant, unsure; almost as if such family events were new to him. She knew why Harry had sent her this picture. It brought back a very sweet memory…

_Mrs. Weasley lowered the camera. Harry, dear, why don't you cut the cake with Ginny? You never got a party this year, why don't you share with her?"_

_Harry looked startled. "Oh no, this is _her_ birthday. I wouldn't want to –"_

"_Don't be silly dear. Ginny, do you mind Harry sharing?" Mrs. Weasley asked._

_Ginny managed to shake her head. Did she mind? She would give anything for good, great Harry Potter to stand beside her and cut the cake with her right then!_

_Mrs. Weasley pulled Harry between her husband and daughter. "Go on, blow out the candles," she said._

_Ginny took a deep breath. "Make a wish," Harry whispered. She looked at him, confused. "It's a Muggle tradition. If you make a wish when you blow out your birthday candles, it'll come true," he explained. She nodded, too shy for words. She took a deep breath again and wished that someday, Harry Potter would _really_ like her. She blew out the candles in one breath. AS she picked up the knife, Harry placed his hand over hers. Ginny blushed scarlet but he smiled reassuringly at her, guiding her small hand to the cake._

_Minutes later, the balloons over their heads burst, spraying confetti over the all. Fred and George got everyone to spread icing all over Ginny's face. Finally, they all settled around the house with plates of cake._

"_You look nice," commented Harry, joining Ginny at the kitchen table. Ginny wiped some of the cream off her face. "Welcome to life with annoying older brothers," she said. She promptly blushed as Harry grinned at her again._

_He poked her nose, adding another spot of icing to it. "Happy birthday. I'm sorry I couldn't get you anything. Thanks for letting me share it," he said, looking rather shy himself._

_She smiled back and nodded. "I hope your wish comes true," he said, going over to join Ron._

_Oh how she wished it would too._

Ginny turned her attention to the letter.

_Dear Ginny,_

_Happy birthday! I bet you thought I'd forget or be all noble and ignore it to keep you safe, didn't you? I probably shouldn't be writing this. It could lead the Death Eaters to capture you, but it's your sixteenth. It's special._

_Ron and I found that photo in his room. You could barely talk to me back then. Look at you now, arguing with me and bossing me around! You're so wonderful, Ginny. You're tough, brave, clever and independent, but I also know you better than that. I know that sometimes, you want to stop being all those amazing qualities. I know that you sometimes wonder what it would be like to be a regular teenager without being so close to the war. I know the softer, vulnerable side of you Ginny. I know that you secretly enjoy the romance, the sweet smiles and small gestures that make your day. I know that, to you, those special moments are the background music in your life: you like having them around, but not overwhelmingly so. _

_I miss those moments. (Thank Merlin Ron's not reading this!)_

_I miss being the boy who's best friend, brother and your Chosen One all rolled into one. _(Ginny rolled her eyes at the little pun). _I miss being the only guy for whom you've danced across the room singing 'A Cauldron Full of Hot Strong Love' while holding an old scrapbook covered with little pink hearts. (Don't kill me, I wasn't spying! I was walking past your room three summers ago and your door was ajar.) The thing is, Ginny, I know you. I know both sides of you. I know that as strong an exterior you put up, you're hurting inside. But every time you feel everything's going wrong, remember that I believe in you. I believe you're the best Gryffindor I know._

_I hope you like the necklace. I found it in my Gringotts vault so I don't know whose it was. But I hope it reminds you to have courage and faith. Don't lose faith Ginny. I think that if you wish for something hard enough and believe in it sincerely enough, it'll come true. Things may not be great at the moment, but it'll all work out, one way or another. Even if I don't make it alive, I want you to know that I'm going to be there, holding your hand and helping you, just like I helped you cut your cake five years ago._

_Have a great day, Ginny. Make your moments worth living in. Go on now; don't worry about everything that's going on. Today, just be a regular girl and blow out your candles. I wish I was that candle flame. Then you would blow me away. Yeah, I should probably leave the jokes to Fred and George…_

_So go on and be the breath of joy and fresh air your family needs right now._

_Harry_

_P.S: Don't forget to make a wish._

Ginny brushed away her tears and looked back into the box. Under the photograph was a necklace with a Gryffindor lion pendant, rubies set into its eyes. On both sides, "Esse Interpidus" was etched.

"Be fearless," she whispered. Harry was right, she couldn't lose faith. She clasped it around her neck, smiled and ran downstairs, pausing by her dresser to pick up two special cookies.

"Oh there you are, Ginny. I was just about to call you," her mother said. Ginny looked around the kitchen, awestruck. It was covered in balloons and streamers just like she'd wanted. Everyone wore party hats and big grins. On the table stood a big cake, sixteen candles stuck into it.

"What's all this?" she asked.

Bill grinned, plopping a hat onto her head. "It was the twins' idea. We figured we could all do with something to celebrate."

Her father hugged her. "And what better cause for celebration than my little girl's sweet sixteen? You didn't think we'd forgotten, did you? You're growing up so fast." He looked a little teary.

"Get a grip dad," she laughed. "Thanks," she whispered to Fred and George who were wearing pattern-changing hats as her mother lit the candles on the cake. A mischievous twinkle came to her eyes as she pulled out two special cookies from her pocket. "A token of my appreciation." She handed them each a cookie.

The twins stood on either side of her, biting into the treats. She prepared to blow out the candles.

_Make a wish._

Ginny closed her eyes. Her previous birthday wish _had_ come true after all. Maybe this one would too. All she had to do was believe. _"I wish I get to spend many more birthdays with Harry,"_ she thought earnestly. She took a deep breath…

In the following months, whenever anyone needed a little cheering up, a little hope that happiness could really exist in those troubled times, they looked at the newest photo on the Weasley mantelpiece. Ginny was blowing out sixteen candles, on hand holding back her hair and the other restraining a lion pendant dangling from her neck, her eye mysteriously black and blue. A broad grin stretched across her face as Bill and her parents laughed uproariously. Bill was clutching his sides, Mr. Weasley's hat was askew and Mrs. Weasley looked like she had hiccups as they all laughed at the two big canaries tweeting at each other from either side of Ginny, pattern-changing hats perched precariously on their heads.

It was enough to make them smile, even if for just a minute and know that joy was not lost. You just had to make your moments worth living in.

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><p><strong>How was it? Please review and let me know :)<br>**

**I think that Ginny would have had her moments of weakness somewhere in DH. There are a lot of stories out there where she's always brave and staunch and stoic but I think that people forget what she was like in the first couple of books. She was shy and reserved around Harry and that aspect of her personality couldn't just have disappeared altogether when she grew up. She was just sixteen, after all. She would have wanted some special moments, she would have wondered what it felt like to just be a teenager and she must have felt, at some point, that the war wasn't worth it if it meant everyone she loved was going to be in danger all the time. Basic instinct would have been to want to shut out ****all the sorrow and worry...That's what I was trying to base this on.**

**Sorry if it didn't really flow very well, especially the part with Fred and George. I was trying to lighten the tone of the story, but no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't make it very good. Basically, they were trying to remind Ginny that she is a Gryffindor and that there are people who worry about her too, she's not alone.**

**This is for Morning Lilies' Photo Album Competition. The photo was the one Harry gave her as a present.**


	3. Normal Family?

**Please read and review :) **

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><p>"Snap!" Albus yelled. The cards blew up right at that moment and the compartment's occupants all laughed. Albus sulked. "I'd <em>just<em> got the right set of cards."

"Better luck next time, Al," Rose laughed, returning the Exploding Snap cards to her bag. "We're almost home anyway."

"Doesn't make much of a difference, going home," chuckled Molly. "Most of us are right here!"

Her cousins nodded. Most of the Weasleys and Potters who were old enough to go to Hogwarts were crowded in that compartment.

Well, there was one extra person too.

"You have to come visit, Scorpius. It'll be just like Hogwarts," Albus piped up.

Scorpius Malfoy smiled from the corner. "We'll see, Al. Our families aren't exactly friendly. Remember the Howlers we got in the first week after we told our parents we were friends?"

"You can stay at our place, dad won't mind," James shrugged. "Just stay out of Uncle Ron's way."

Scorpius made a non – committal noise and looked out the window. Albus and Rose began talking about seeing Lily and Hugo again. Molly was gushing about Lucy to Louis who was grumbling about Dominique. Fred and James were arguing about whose sister was more annoying. Rose was now praying that her mum would be able to contain her dad's affections and stop him from making a scene. Albus was telling her about the _extremely _loving reception James had got from their mum the previous year and fervently hoping that she wouldn't repeat it for him. Louis was just hoping his dad wouldn't make any loud werewolf jokes. Fred was hoping his family wouldn't embarrass him with a homecoming prank. They were all talking about how much fun they would have; about seeing their smiling, welcoming parents.

Scorpius thought about his own dad. He'd be _so_ out of place among the Weasley and Potter parents. Scorpius couldn't help feeling jealous of all his new friends. Their parents would greet them loudly and they'd go on picnics and family reunions and have _fun_. His parents, especially his dad, would never do something so normal. Whenever anyone saw the Malfoy family out in public, they would keep their distance, as if they were expecting them to attack at any moment. Sometimes they were subjected to glares and even harsh words. Scorpius knew all this was because of the war, but couldn't people see that they were just another family? His dad always responded to the public's reactions with a stony expression. His mother always had an impassive expression though she didn't receive much attention since she hadn't taken sides in the war.

But sometimes, Scorpius wished his dad would take the initiative to set people right. He was just like a regular father at home, making jokes and playing with him. Outside, however, he never tried to show people that he really was a normal person now. He never made an effort to act like they were just another family going about their own business. Scorpius was sure people would think better of his parents if they showed that they were as capable of compassion and love as anyone else. Yet, he could never get his father to even smile at him in public. He never understood why they couldn't be normal. Most people were scared off by his dad's stony glare than his reputation!

Maybe his parents didn't love him enough to show it openly. Maybe he was an embarrassment to them somehow.

The train pulled into the station and everyone got up, distracting him from his thoughts. He was the last one to pull his trunk out of the compartment and onto the platform. The minute he stepped out of the compartment, he found himself at the edge of a crowd of redheads. He moved aside as Victoire Weasley took a picture of all the students being welcomed back.

Closest to him was Albus who was trying to get Lily to stop choking him in her bear hug. Teddy was messing up James' hair, probably as punishment for interrupting him and Victoire various times during the year. James was laughing and trying to fight him off. A little farther off, a green haired Fred had Hugo in a loose headlock, telling him off for joining in Roxanne's prank while George and Angelina Weasley were patting his sister on the back, laughing uproariously. Molly was talking animatedly to her dad, one arm around little Lucy who was tugging on her sleeve. Louis was looking slightly bemused as his Grandma squeezed the breath out of him. Rose was glaring at her dad as her mother smothered her in a big hug, kissing her loudly on the cheeks. Ron Weasley was laughing and winking as he stood away, unloading Rose's trunk. Bill was hugging Dominique while Fleur was trying to get Victoire to put away her camera and tell her about her graduation. In the midst of them all, Harry and Ginny Potter were hugging, smiling and fighting their way through the sea of family, trying to reach their kids.

Everyone around them was smiling at the exuberant welcome too. It was the perfect picture of family. Something that Scorpius wished he could experience too. He glanced around. His own father was nowhere to be seen.

"Hey, Scor, where's your dad?" Albus asked, extricating himself from the excited knot of people.

Scorpius shrugged. "I guess they're late." He lowered his voice so only Al could hear him. "Honestly, I don't think they care about me enough to act like regular parents coming to pick up their only child from his first year of school." He couldn't keep the bitterness out of his voice as he looked wistfully at the Weasleys. "I wish they were like your parents, Al. I wish they were like normal parents."

"Scorpius."

The two boys turned to find Draco and Astoria behind them. Astoria smiled at her son while Draco patted him on the shoulder, the expression on his face softening briefly.

"Hello, Mr. Malfoy, I'm Albus Potter." Al held out his hand bravely, disregarding the fact that this man had sent Scorpius a howler telling him to have no contact with the 'Potter boy'.

Draco shook it awkwardly. "Nice to meet you, Albus."

"It's wonderful to meet Scorpius' best friend, finally." Astoria gave Albus a warm smile as she shook his hand too.

Harry suddenly appeared behind Al. "Ready to go?" he asked his son.

"Yeah dad. Oh, this is my best friend, Scorpius," replied Al.

"Hello Scorpius. Al and Rose have told us a lot about you."Harry smiled at the boy and then looked at the taller blonde man standing beside him. "How have you been Draco? Astoria?" he asked politely. They replied just as politely that they were very well, thank you. An awkward silence ensued. "We were heading to the Leaky Cauldron for lunch. Why don't you join us?" Harry blurted suddenly, unable to stand the tension.

The Malfoys gaped at him. "Er…I think we'll have to be leaving. Astoria needs to be at an exhibition soon –" Draco began but Astoria interrupted.

"That's alright, Draco. I can go there alone. Why don't you go with them? I'm sure Scorpius would like to go and spend some more time with his friends," she said firmly.

Draco looked at his son pleadingly. "Er…it's okay, mum. I can always see Al some other time," Scorpius said uncertainly. His dad was bad enough in public, what would he be like in a roomful of people who disliked him?

"Don't be silly! You and Albus are friends. Go ahead and have fun. Draco, I'm sure you'd like to catch up with all your old classmates. Go ahead and have fun. You can both join me at the exhibition later." Astoria looked sternly around the group.

Harry looked disappointed. "If you already have plans, we could always take a rain check," he suggested hopefully.

"It's quite alright, Mr. Potter. Draco and Scorpius hate formal gatherings anyway. I'm sure they'd much rather have lunch with you." Astoria gave Harry a look that dared him to challenge her. Harry was never much good at resisting women's looks.

"Alright…I'll just let the others know you're joining us." He took a good luck around the station in case he might never see it again as he led Al back to his cousins.

"Astoria,_ what_ in Merlin's name are you doing?" Draco hissed, pulling his wife away from their son. "You _know_ they all hate me."

Astoria glanced at Scorpius. "You heard Scor. We don't give him the kind of public affection his friends get and that makes him feel left out. Do you want our son growing up believing that his parents don't really love him and that's why they never make an effort to be normal in public? You're always so stiff and intimidating in company, no wonder he feels that way! Go with them and show Scorpius that you _do_ care enough about him to make an effort to redeem yourself. Go and act like a normal father!"

Draco sighed. He couldn't resist women's glares much either.

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><p>"You invited Malfoy?" Ron looked incredulously at Harry.<p>

"I didn't mean to! It just slipped out. I hate awkward silences," Harry protested.

"But he can't come!" Ginny hissed. "Have you forgotten everything he's done?"

"No, and I haven't forgotten that he might have turned out okay if not for his parents either. Come on guys, it's not like I invited Lucius Malfoy. Narcissa saved my life; she was capable of loving her son enough to give us a chance to win. The Malfoys can't be _all_ bad," Harry argued.

"Besides, if he's already said yes, you can't possible tell him not to come, Ron. That's rude," Hermione sighed.

"He was rude and worse to all of us for years! I don't think I'll feel guilty about it," Ron countered.

"Look, I remember all the horrible things Malfoy's done to us, to _me, _but I'm also mature enough to know that he's not a Death Eater anymore. He's not so bad, Ron. He's quite polite and everything at the Ministry," Hermione told him.

"That's because he could get arrested by the Aurors if he wasn't."

"And you think you couldn't handle him now if he does something wrong?"

"Come on, at least let him come so that Scorpius can come along. You know Rose and Al are his friends. They surely want Scorpius to be there and he can't come unless Draco does. We can't take him back to his house later. You know we can't go to Malfoy manor unless invited by the occupants or unless we have a strong reason to believe he's hostile according to the agreement with the Ministry," Harry said, looking Ron and Ginny.

Ginny looked over to where Scorpius stood in the midst of their children, talking and laughing with them all. "He does seem like a nice boy," Ginny admitted grudgingly. "Fine. He can come, but he better behave."

"You don't have to be nice to Draco Malfoy, Ron. Just…just let him tag along. For the kids?" Hermione pleaded.

"None of us wants him there, but if it's going to make the children happy…" Harry pleaded.

Ron muttered something like, "The things I do for them." He sighed. "Fine, I'll be nice. But if he insults anyone, I'm hexing him."

"I'll help you with that," Ginny promised. They quickly explained the situation to the other adults, silencing their protests. Harry walked up to Draco.

"Mal- Draco, are you ready to go? We're just going to Side-Along-Apparate with the kids."

Draco nodded. He had sent Scorpius' trunk with Astoria so he reached only for his son's hand now. Scorpius prayed fervently that his dad's acceptance of the lunch invitation meant that he was at least going to try to be normal and wouldn't sit stony-faced through the afternoon.

Draco was extremely nervous. He didn't know how to be a normal parent, his own parents hadn't been normal! If not for Scorpius and Astoria, he wouldn't even dream of going anywhere with the Weasleys and Potters. "The things I do for them," he muttered before turning on the spot.

A few minutes and lots of chaos later, he was sitting between Harry and Scorpius at a long table in the crowded pub. He had to admit, he was amused at the reactions they were receiving although he made sure to keep his feelings off his face. His favourite moment so far had been the stunned looks Neville and Hannah Longbottom had given him when he said he was with the Weasleys.

Scorpius talked animatedly while he ate in silence. "So Malf – Draco, how's work?" Ginny tried to make polite conversation.

Draco was about to shrug and leave it at that, but he felt Scorpius' eyes on him. Normal parents tended to actually reply verbally, he recalled from his observations of people. "It's fine. You'd be surprised how many magical accidents take place everyday." Normal parents had to ask the next dreaded question. "How's yours?"

Everyone looked surprised at his politeness. "It's alright. I've been able to write about more matches this year with both my boys away at school," Ginny replied. Another awkward pause ensued.

Draco remembered that normal parents related anecdotes from work. "Quidditch is one of the major causes of accidents really. Just last week we found this wizard with his nose magically enlarged and his broom jammed up it." He chuckled. "There were bogies everywhere."

Scorpius closed his eyes, cheeks reddening as the listening adults stared. Hermione looked at her spinach soup and pushed it away, looking rather sick. Harry suppressed a laugh at Draco's deflated expression to the reaction he was getting. Everyone quickly went back to their food.

The conversation slowly went to Hogwarts and how the children were doing. "I'm proud of Rose, she topped her class," Ron said, sounding rather like Percy for a moment.

"Scorpius gave me some tough competition," Rose admitted. "He only came in second by two marks."

"Scorpius isn't just smart though," Draco said suddenly. Most regular parents he'd met liked to brag about their children's achievements. "He's also quite resourceful and fun-loving. He managed to set off a lot of fireworks in the Great Hall with your son, James." Draco nodded at Ginny and Harry. "Scorpius was clever enough to not get caught but James did. My son is quite the expert at avoiding detentions."

James' eyes had widened in horror and he was shaking his head rapidly at Draco. Ginny's eyes narrowed threateningly. "James," she said, "I thought we agreed you'd have no more than ten detentions a year this time. I seem to recall you only telling me about ten without including this one."

"Erm…I must have forgotten?" James tried.

"I see. How many _more_ detentions have you conveniently forgotten to tell me about?"

Draco groaned mentally as James glared at him. How was he to know the boy hadn't told his parents about his detentions? He looked apologetic as Ginny banned James from going out of the house for a week. He was well aware that his efforts to be a normal parent were going down the drain.

Harry tried to lighten the mood. "Anyone want to hear a joke? How many Dark Lords does it take to change a light bulb?"

Everyone shrugged.

"Two. One to do it and the other to kill him and take the credit!" All of them laughed. Draco laughed the hardest, trying to show everyone (Scorpius) that he found it funny, just like them all, that he was as normal as they were.

"Oh, I know one!" he volunteered. Scorpius squeezed his eyes shut, this couldn't be good.

"Why was the Healer happy when the visitors left the sick patients?"

Everyone shrugged again.

"Because they took the Floo!" Draco finished, grinning at everyone. Albus smiled at Scorpius' expression. Everyone looked at each other, unsure of whether to laugh or not. Scorpius put his head on the table, resisting the urge to strangle his dad.

Draco could see that Scorpius didn't think much of his efforts (heck, _he _didn't think much of his own efforts!) and he was determined to win his son's favour. Oh how he wished he could use his wit and sarcasm now. It always left his friends in splits. But he didn't think that the Potters and Weasleys would be amused, especially not when the sarcasm was directed at them. He ploughed on with another joke. "What do you get if your cross a Ravenclaw with the hospital wing?"

Everyone looked blank.

"_Ill_ – literacy!" He could almost hear the crickets.

Scorpius pushed his chair back. "Thanks for the great lunch," he smiled at the Longbottoms. "Thanks for inviting us, Mr. Potter. I had a great time. I think we should get going, dad. Mum will be waiting." He needed to get his dad away before they were both embarrassed any more.

Draco didn't argue. "Yes, thank you everyone. I lost track of the time." He forced a smile onto his face.

"Leaving so soon? Maybe we can meet again sometime," Harry said politely. He winced as three pairs of legs kicked him under the table.

"Er…yeah, just send me an owl," Draco replied, hoping Potter never sent him any owls of the sort.

"Bye Scorpius," Albus said as Rose waved. "Come again soon."

"But don't bring your dad," James whispered mutinously. "I get in enough trouble just fine without his help."

Scorpius laughed. He scowled at his dad as they Apparated back home. They landed just outside the large gates to the Manor. He started hurrying up the drive without glancing at his father.

"How was school, Scorpius? I know you told me lots in your letters, but I'd like to hear more," Draco said, keeping pace with his son.

Scorpius just shrugged.

"How many times did you get caught sneaking out to play Quidditch after curfew?"

The boy looked up in surprise. "How'd you know about that?"

Draco put an arm around his shoulders. "You're my son," he grinned. "I used to do the same thing. Did you find that pond behind the school?"

"Yeah, I found it right in my first week. I found the secret passages in the dungeons too," Scorpius said proudly. "I met some hippogriffs as well. Can we get one as a pet?"

"Yes, let's have my shoulder ripped off while we're at it."

"It's your fault for being rude to it, Dad."

Father and son argued all the way up to the house. The last couple of hours might never have happened. The smell of cinnamon biscuits greeted them as they drew closer to the door. Draco stopped on the porch, turning to Scorpius. "Look, I'm sorry about lunch. I probably embarrassed you a lot in front of your friends."

"You're so normal now, dad. Why couldn't you be like this with the Weasleys?" Scorpius asked. "You don't even make an effort to be yourself in public."

Draco sighed. "Even though we were pardoned in the war, thanks to your Grandmum, people never believed we were good and they had every reason to be suspicious. Every move we made, every expression, every word we uttered was analyzed by the wizarding community. If my dad put his arm on my shoulder, it was taken as a gesture that he'd rather not touch anyone except his family. If he coughed, it was taken as mocking or skeptical. If I looked at something for too long, people thought we'd steal it. Everyone gave us strange looks when we went out. Some of them stopped at harsh words, some of them attacked us.

"Over the years, I've learnt to control my expressions. Keeping an impassive face all the time gave the public no reason to drag me into any kind of controversy. But you're right, people never got to see that we are capable of compassion and love because we never showed any outside the Manor. I'm sorry today went badly; I don't really have much experience being a normal parent. But I can promise you, I will try harder."

He hugged Scorpius. "Just remember, Scor, I may not hug you or talk to you or act like any normal parent would in public, but that doesn't mean I love you any less than the Weasleys or Potters love their children."

Scorpius smiled. "Thanks dad, at least you tried today."

"Your mum's going to kill me when she hears how the day went," Draco groaned, his hand on the doorknob. "She'll probably find classes on how to be a normal parent."

Scorpius chuckled as they went inside. "We're home, Mum!" he called. Astoria walked out of the kitchen, holding a tray of biscuits.

"Oh finally! How did it go? Did your father behave himself?" she asked anxiously.

Draco looked a little scared. Scorpius smiled. "Well there's room for improvement but he's a good regular parent."

"Oh thank Merlin. I was worried he'd embarrass you somehow. Would you two like a biscuit?" Astoria smiled as she passed the tray around.

Scorpius couldn't help grinning at his dad's relieved expression. He watched his parents laughing and talking. His dad was making some sort of sarcastic joke. There was a tray of biscuits, a nice low fire and the house smelled like cinnamon – it felt like a proper home. All families were weird, after all. His parents might not be what everyone else called 'normal', but at the end of the day, they all loved each other and that was what really mattered.

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><p><strong><strong>Please do review! Constructive criticism is always welcomed. The stats say this story got over a hundred visitors but barely any reviews or alerts...<strong>**

**This was a bit of a lighter story. I hope I didn't make Draco too OOC. I wanted to make him a bit off character because, after all, he's in a situation where he can't be in character! But do tell me what you thought of this!**


	4. Christmas Is A Time For Family

**Another story written for Morning Lilies' Photo Album Competition. Please read and review!**

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><p><em>It is not flesh and blood but the heart which makes us fathers and sons. ~Johann Schiller<em>

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><p>"Ouch!" Harry winced as he hit his head on his way out from under the Burrow's kitchen table.<p>

"Check the kitchen, someone might be in there," came Fred's voice.

Harry hurriedly pulled out his Invisibility Cloak and threw it over himself. He held his breath as George came in and looked around.

"There's no one in here," George said. "Merlin, they're good at this! I thought we'd have found at least Fleur by now."

"She probably has experience playing with her little sister. Let's check upstairs." Fred took one last look around the room before leading his twin out and toward the stairs.

Harry exhaled softly and grinned to himself. The Weasley children and he had managed to convince Remus and Fleur to join them in a game of hide and seek while Mr. and Mrs. Weasley were at the village. Harry supposed an Invisibility Cloak was against the rules but he didn't think the twins would play fair anyway.

He gazed around the room, hoping to find something for a quick bite. His eyes fell on the wall over the stove. It was plastered with old photos. He moved closer, smiling at the snapshots. There was one of a little Ginny, riding a toy broomstick; the twins shoving Percy into a pyramid; Charlie holding a Quidditch Cup in front of Hogwarts; Bill surrounded by his siblings, obviously just back from his first year at school...

Harry reached out and pulled two photos away from the wall. He smiled nostalgically as he ducked back under the table and settled down on the floor. One of the pictures was of Fred, George, Ron and Percy in the Great Hall. On the back, "Merry Christmas to everyone" was neatly written followed by four signatures.

The other photo was one Harry only vaguely remembered being taken. He supposed Percy had been behind the camera. It showed the twins and Ron, sprawled in front of the common room fire, Ron looking highly disbelieving about whatever Fred was telling him. Harry was sitting on the couch, watching the fire with a small smile. It had been Christmas Eve during his first year. He had been so upset that afternoon...

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><p><em>24th December, 1991<em>

"We'll have fun; we can visit Hagrid and explore the whole place!" Ron said looking excitedly around the Great Hall. It was nearly empty; everyone had gone home for the holidays.

Harry nodded. He was looking forward to Christmas. For the first time he felt like he was really at home for the holiday. He would be with people just like him and he couldn't think of a place cozier than Hogwarts to be his home. He and Ron would find Nicholas Flamel, eat loads of Christmas pudding or have snowball fights or –

"Hello Ronniekins, missing home?" Fred and George slid in beside Ron.

"Of course not, this place is great!" Ron snapped.

"Ah, don't lie," teased George. "We know you're secretly missing Mum's cooking and helping Ginny decorate the tree."

"And singing carols with Dad and jumping on our beds in the morning in excitement," Fred added.

"Don't be silly, I'm not five!" Ron shoved them both away. Harry felt a little uncomfortable as Fred and George continued teasing Ron. He slid a little farther down the bench. He'd forgotten about Ron's brothers. Christmas was a time for family after all. Surely, Ron would want to be with them. Right on cue, Percy walked up to them.

"Oh good, you're all here. Harry would you mind taking a photograph of the four of us? It's for a family Christmas Card." He handed Harry a camera.

"Oh. Sure Percy," Harry said. As he took the picture and gave back the camera; as he watched Ron and the Weasleys talk and laugh about their previous Christmas exploits, he felt worse. "I need some air," he mumbled, hurrying outside.

Harry walked aimlessly across the snow covered grounds. _"Not going home for Christmas, Potter? Oh that's right; you don't have anywhere to go back to!"_ Malfoy's words hadn't hurt him before. He'd always felt like he _was_ home at Hogwarts. The castle was large and warm. He'd found people who actually liked him there. But now he realized that a home wasn't made by a building. A home was made by a family.

And he didn't have one.

He hadn't felt like he was an outsider for the last few months, he hadn't felt different or abnormal like the Dursleys said he was. He'd made friends whom he liked very much. But seeing Ron with his brothers had reminded Harry that he was just a friend. As long as Harry wasn't a Weasley, he was still an outsider. He couldn't share in the excitement of Christmas the way they could. He could never talk about all the fun he and his relatives had during Christmas, he didn't even know if his parents had ever got a present for him!

"Harry? What're yeh doin' out here on yer own?"

Harry looked up, surprised. He'd walked all the way to Hagrid's cabin. "Oh I just fancied a walk, Hagrid. I'll be heading back now," he replied quickly.

Hagrid peered at him. Clearly, Harry didn't look as nonchalant as he'd wanted to. "Why don't you come in for some cocoa? Ain't nothing better on Christmas Eve," Hagrid suggested.

Soon, he and Harry were sipping cocoa in front of Hagrid's fire. "Where's Ron?" Hagrid asked.

"He's with his brothers. Everyone's with their families," Harry mumbled.

Hagrid put down his mug and leaned forward, frowning slightly. "What's the matter, Harry? Yeh seem a little down. Did yeh figh' with Ron or something? Yeh should be excited, firs' Christmas at Hogwarts and all!"

Harry shrugged.

"Tell me what's botherin' yeh, maybe I can help." It was the kindness and concern in Hagrid's voice that got Harry talking.

"Christmas is a time for family, Hagrid. I don't have one. I can't intrude on the Weasleys. They're all talking about things they used to do at home. I don't know if my dad helped me put ornaments on a Christmas tree or if my Mum baked mouth-watering cookies or if we all snuggled up while Dad told us stories about elves and Santa Claus. Ron's only known me for four months; I bet he wouldn't even be here if his parents were home! I can't look forward to any presents or cards or sweets from home because I don't have anyone to send me any!" Harry looked away, feeling rather ashamed of his outburst. He was lucky to be here at Hogwarts and with his friend. He shouldn't be feeling resentful at all. But he'd spent ten Christmases hoping that someone, some long lost relation, would come and take him away to somewhere he belonged. Now he _was _somewhere he belonged. Yet, he still didn't have anyone special to share Christmas with. He still had no family.

Hagrid laughed.

Harry looked up, surprised. "Is that what's botherin' yeh now? Do yeh remember I told yeh I got expelled in me third year?" Hagrid asked.

Harry nodded.

"Well I was thirteen and I was sittin' here in this cabin, all alone. My ol' dad had...passed away...the previous year and my mum had left us much earlier. I was thinkin' exactly what yeh just said. I didn't have any family and I was jealous of all the kids going home for Christmas. I wen' to bed thinking I wouldn't go out at all the next morning. But you know wha' happened?" Hagrid's eyes were twinkling.

"What?" Harry asked curiously.

"Professor Dumbledore and a bunch of my ol' friends and the old gamekeeper all turned up in the morning with lots of presents and food! We had our own little party in this cabin. I didn't feel left out or alone at all. I've spent every Christmas with the staff since. Most of them don't have any family left that they're very close to either since they have to stay here for ten months.

"But yeh know what, Harry? Sometimes, the best family's made up of people yeh aren't related to. The Weasleys are some of the nicest people I know. Ron may have his brothers here but he sure won't forget his friends. He won't let yeh be alone. Yeh'll see, soon enough, yeh'll have your own little family of people who aren't related to yeh. And they won't love yeh any less because of it either."

"Thanks Hagrid." Harry smiled up at him, feeling a lot better and a lot less alone. "I should be getting back now."

Hagrid waved at him and watched the small boy make his way back up to the castle. He took out a little knife and a piece of wood. He was going to make sure that Harry woke up to at least one present on Christmas morning.

"There you are! I've been looking all over for you," Ron said the moment Harry walked into the castle.

"Sorry, I was at Hagrid's," Harry apologized.

"Why didn't you take me along?"

"Well you were with your brothers so I thought you'd rather be with them for a while. It's a time for family and all."

Ron made an impatient noise. "I see enough of them. I said I'd go exploring with you and I will! Come on, you'll miss all the fun. Fred and George are starting their Christmas Eve Exploding Snap marathon." He grinned. "It's family tradition to charm the cards to blow up when Percy gets them."

He pulled Harry up the stairs, not noticing the smile on his friend's face.

A few hours later, they were all gathered around the common room fire. Fred and George were trying to convince Ron that the ghosts of Christmas were real while Ron was rolling his eyes. Harry barely registered the flash of a camera as Percy captured the scene.

He was only half listening to the twins and Ron bickering as he gazed at the fire, smiling slightly. He had just spent the afternoon playing Exploding Snap, decorating a small tree in the common room, singing Fred and George's version of famous wizarding carols and enjoyed hot chocolate with the Weasleys.

They had all been Weasley family traditions.

He'd always wanted three wizard brothers. Now as he watched the twins and Ron, he thought he might just be on the way to finding them. Maybe you did get to choose your family after all...

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><p>Harry dropped the photos as Ron barreled into the kitchen and dived under the table.<p>

"Ouch! Ron, I'm here!" Harry complained.

"Shh! You have the Cloak? Excellent, let me under it! Fred and George are coming and they're armed," Ron hissed.

"That's my jumper, you prat! _This_ is the Cloak."

"Ow! There's no need to kick me!"

"Well, cross your legs then. This is a Cloak, not a tent."

"Aha!" Fred bounded into the room and caught sight of Harry and Ron's heads floating under the table. "Get the water balloons, George, they're in here."

Harry and Ron looked at each other and made a run for it, darting past Fred and pushing George out of the way on the stairs.

"Let's get to your room, we can fight back with the stink pellet stash," Harry called over his shoulder to Ron.

Ginny poked her head out of a cupboard on the landing, took one look at the water balloons in the twins' hands and joined Harry and Ron in their mad dash up the stairs.

"I thought we were playing hide and seek, what's all this?" Bill asked poking his head out of Percy's old room. He got a water balloon in the face and set off after Fred and George with a war cry.

A bemused Remus and Fleur looked out of their hiding places at all the people running up.

"Gotcha!" yelled Fred, tackling Ron as Harry yanked open Ron's bedroom door. George joined Fred and Bill crashed into him, sending all of them headfirst into Ron's room. The water balloons in George's hand exploded as they all landed in one big, tangled heap of arms and legs on the floor, completely drenched. All of them were laughing as they tried to get up.

Remus took a quick picture before they all separated themselves. It was a Muggle camera and the photo slid out of the little slot under the lens. He handed it to Bill. "That should make a nice Christmas card for your parents," he smiled.

"Thanks Remus," Bill said, as Fleur helped him to his feet. He picked up a pen from Ron's desk and wrote, on the back of the photo, "The Weasleys." He signed below it and handed it to Fred. "Pass it on."

Fred signed and gave it to George. The room was extremely noisy now; everyone was yelling at the twins and talking loudly. In the middle of the chaos, Ron passed the photo to Harry.

Harry looked at the caption and hesitated. He wasn't technically a Weasley. He looked around him. He was surrounded by people who were ready to give their lives for him. He was wearing a Weasley jumper. He'd been practically living here for the last few years. He thought about the natural, easy, unhesitant way Ron had passed him the picture, not even checking whether he was part of the family or not. He got presents on Christmas and his birthday from these people...

"Hey Harry, hurry up and sign that. I have to find a decent envelope for it," Bill said. He smiled at Harry, as if he knew exactly what was making him hesitate. Harry smiled back as he put the pen to the photo. "And Harry," he wrote at the end of the long list of names.

The dictionary defined family as a group of people who were closely related by blood. Harry thought the correct definition was that a family was a group of people who loved you as much as you loved them.

He was proud to be a Potter of course, he wasn't forgetting his parents. He was just adopting a surrogate family.

Because, after all, sometimes the best family was made up of people who weren't related to you at all.

_"And,"_ thought Harry as Bill clapped him on the back and Ron tried to strangle him for being so slow with the Cloak and Fred, George and Ginny joked about Ron's terrible hiding skills, all of them as comfortable with Harry as if they had grown up with him, _"they didn't love you any less because of it."_

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><p><em>"What is family? They were the people who claimed you. In good, in bad, in parts or in whole, they were the ones who showed up, who stayed in there, regardless. It wasn't just about blood relations or shared chromosomes, but something wider, bigger."<em>  
><em> ~Sarah Dessen (Lock and Key)<em>

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><p><strong>Sorry if it seemed a little sketchy...it was written in a bit of a rush. But I hope you liked it! Do tell me if Hagrid or Harry seemed a little OOC, I've never written them before and I think they, along with Ron and Hermione, are some of the hardest characters to keep in character.<strong>

**Feedback is much appreciated! Please review :)  
><strong>


	5. Memories

**Read and review :)  
><strong>

**Disclaimer : I don't own HP.**

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><p><em>Arthur opened the old diary. He was tired after all the activity the day had involved. He was only fifty – not so old in wizarding years – but still, he sighed in satisfaction as he sank into his favourite armchair by the fire. It had been a long time since he'd written in this diary but now he wanted to read it through, right from the beginning, before he made his last entry in it. He lowered his eyes to the yellowed news clipping stuck to the first page. <em>

_The clipping had obviously been torn out, probably in frustration or anger, judging by the rough edges. A photograph preceded the article. It depicted a Quidditch match, the stands bursting with people, but the focus of the picture was on four people, a father and his three sons. The smallest boy, no older than three sat on his father's lap, pointing excitedly at the broomsticks zooming above him. Another boy, about fifteen years old, was on his right, cheering madly and waving a banner that had a conspicuous chunk missing from a corner. On the little boy's other side, the third boy - about twelve years old – grinned widely as two players high-fived in mid air above this little the boys had painted faces, though the two older ones seemed to have let their youngest brother paint theirs. It was a perfect family moment.  
><em>

_The caption below the photo read_, "File photo (5th April, 1953): The Weasley family, in happier times, at a league match cheering on their uncle, Nick Weasley."

Dec 16th, 1955

Prodigal Quidditch player, Rupert Septimus Weasley, suffered a serious crash during a short trip from Wales. Weasley, who joined the famous Caerphilly Catapults as a permanent team member earlier this year, was accompanying his teammates back to England after a league match. The accident occurred on the team's flight to Shropshire from where a Portkey had been arranged. An unexpected blizzard resulted in severe snowfall and high wind speeds which led Mr. Weasley to lose control of his broom. He smashed into the side of a rock, unable to see where he was going due to poor visibility. The weather conditions delayed Healers from reaching him. He is currently in critical condition at St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries. The Catapults, who have not lost a single match in the last nine months – ever since Weasley's addition to the team –, are anxious for their star Chaser's full recovery. Rupert Weasley's family was unavailable for comment.

_A second clipping followed this._

Dec 26th, 1956

Rupert Weasley, Chaser for the Caerphilly Catapults is reported to be recovering steadily. He was declared out of danger by the Healers early on Christmas morning. However, the Healer-in-charge said that his legs will be paralyzed for life. While this comes as a terrible blow to the Welsh team, the Weasley family is ecstatic.

"He's going to live, that's all we care about," said a clearly relieved Septimus Weasley. "It's the best Christmas present I could get," added Bilius Weasley, Rupert's younger brother.

Rupert, famous after only nine months on the team, was too weak to have visitors other than his family. However, his team is anxious to see him and convey their congratulations very soon.

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><p><em>A handwritten letter, as yellowed as the news articles, was pinned on the next page. It was extremely wrinkled, as though it had been crumpled and smoothed out again. The upper corner was burnt slightly and the whole letter was punctuated by dried tears…<em>

27th December, 1956

Dear Arthur,

Heck if I know why I'm writing this to _you_. You're six years old and can't understand most of what's going on. Aunt Macy told me this might help me feel better. She's been a brick really, putting up with us while Mum and Dad are at the hospital. She suggested I write down what I was feeling as a letter to someone if I didn't want to confide in her. She said it was a better way to vent my feelings than taking it out on Mum's china.

I envy you, honestly. All you know is that Rupert got hurt. You have no idea that he nearly _died_. You have no idea that half his bones were broken. You didn't see the blood. You didn't hear him scream when he woke up in the middle of the Healing. You haven't noticed Mum glancing at the windows or the fireplace every few minutes, waiting for news, hoping it would be good. You haven't noticed that Dad hasn't smiled for the last ten days. All you know was that Rupert was _hurt…_

I hated him. I've hated him all last week. Why did he have to be a Quidditch player when he could've taken that job at Gringotts? Why did he have to play a match in Wales in the middle of winter? Why couldn't he have stopped in a cave or something when the blizzard started up? Why couldn't he have waited a few hours and missed the blizzard altogether? Why, why, why?

I'll never forget Dad's expression when Derrick (the Catapults' captain) contacted us. I'll never forget that feeling of…I don't know how to describe it. It felt like everything _stopped_ for a second…my heart, the whole world, everything seemed to just stop. You never realize how much someone means to you till you consider the possibility that you may never see them again. To know that I might not celebrate Christmas with my brother; that I might not get to give him the Quidditch jersey I put his name on; that I might not see him smile, _ever again_, that was…frightening.

I burned the jersey. I couldn't stand to see anything Quidditch-related for a few days.

Finally, on Christmas morning (around one, I think), the Healers sent us a message. No one was asleep, except you. No one _could _sleep. Christmas was Rupert's favourite holiday. Every year, he would come chasing after me when I stole his presents. He would decorate the tree singing loud carols. Mum would shove him out of the kitchen when she caught him with his fingers in the pie. He and Dad would sneak back in later and steal some cookies. He would never object when you and I jumped on his bed in the morning…we couldn't possibly sleep that night. Not with those memories haunting us.

I sank to my knees and thanked every god that I knew of when the Healer said Rupert would be okay. I even thanked Santa Claus for the best Christmas present ever! I hadn't wanted anything else. I just wanted to be able to talk to Rupert again.

The big idiot asked me where his Christmas present was when we went to visit him later. He acted all macho and pretended like nothing had happened. I didn't care. I told him he could tease me all he wanted. I love him and I told him so. He hugged me and said I wasn't getting rid of him that easily. He promised to stick around until _you_ grow old. It's only been a couple of days since he woke up properly, but he's already laughing and joking around about how I can steer his broom while he throws the Quaffle.

Of course, he can't possibly play Quidditch anymore, not without being able to use his legs. I don't care. I'm just glad he's back.

I'm just glad I got to tell him how much I love him.

Your big brother,  
>Bilius<p>

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><p><em>The next few pages were filled with diary entries, each one written by Arthur himself. He ran his eyes over the familiar handwriting, remembering how he had felt when he had written the first entry on the adjoining page. He had been so, so angry…<em>

15th May, 1964

I found this letter in Bilius' old History of Magic textbook a few minutes ago. His writing's nearly illegible in places and shaky everywhere else. It was also blotched with his tears and difficult to read.

Now, it's also creased all over and burnt at the edge since I crumpled it up and tossed it in the fire before I had second thoughts and decided to keep it. I just felt so angry when I read it; I didn't want to see it again.

My family went through _so much_. Rupert had nearly _died._ All they had told me was that he was hurt. They told me he'd had a Quidditch accident and he couldn't use his legs anymore. No one told me how it had felt. Granted, I was six years old, but no one ever told me when I was older. All this while, I still foolishly imagined his wound as the small scratch Mum could put a bandage on and kiss it to make it all better.

I had nearly lost the chance to grow up with my amazing big brother.

I was only three years old at the time but I remember the first Quidditch match Dad took me to. I didn't understand the game of course, but I remember lights, cold wind and flashes of people flying around. I remember finger-painting on Bilius' face before the game. I remember Rupert yelling at me before bursting into laughter when I tore off the corner of his banner and tried to eat it. He'd given me a piggyback ride all the way to the box we were sitting in as part of Uncle Nick's family.

I remember Rupert lifting me up so I could put the star on the Christmas tree. I remember him sneaking me a cookie before dinner and winking at me every Easter. I remember him levitating himself up the stairs every night after his accident to read me and Bilius a bedtime story. He taught me how to play Quidditch though he couldn't fly anymore himself. He let me sleep beside him the night before I came to Hogwarts. He still writes to me every week. I remember him holding my hand to help me cut my sixth birthday cake even though Mum and Dad were right behind us…

All this might never have happened. Rupert…I might never have known Rupert.

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><p>17th May, 1964<p>

I can't stop thinking about that stupid letter! Bilius, why couldn't you have burned it later? I'm studying for my exams right now and it all suddenly seems pointless. I haven't learned a single spell that might have helped Rupert. There aren't any charms that could have made him see through the snow. There aren't any spells that could have predicted the blizzard. There aren't any spells that could have detected the rock. No magic could have made the experience less traumatic. No spell or potion is going to bring my brother's legs back to normal! No spell is going to let him live like a normal, 25-year-olld!

If he had died, no magic could have brought him back.

Magic. Bah. It's useless.

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><p>21st July, 1964<p>

Rupert picked up on my bad mood right on the first day of the holidays. He thought my exam scores were the problem until he noticed I was avoiding him. He called me up to his room today and asked me what was bothering me. So many expressions crossed his face when I told him…pain, sadness, joy, guilt…Finally; he told me what _he_ had felt during his mishap. I can actually remember it word for word.

"Arty," he said (he knows I hate that nickname!) "There are always two ways to look at life: the sad way, and the optimist's way. I don't remember much of the crash and its aftermath, I was out cold." He grinned at me as though it was funny. I simply glared back, trying not to let on that I was about to cry. He continued. "I remember thinking that I couldn't die, not before Christmas. I had to give you my presents. I had worked so hard on yours, especially. Do you remember that little dream-catcher?" How could I not? It still hangs over my bed, much to the amusement of my dorm-mates.

"I remember waking up suddenly on Christmas morning, knowing that I'd almost died. Ever since then, I always try to find the good in life. I lost my legs but I _lived_. Mum, Dad and Bilius went through a lot, but we came out of it as a stronger family. I found that my teammates cared about me more as a friend than a Chaser. They visit me even now. I found out how much I love my family and how much you all love me. Many things _might have_ happened, but they didn't.

"Don't give up on magic, Arthur. If not for it, I wouldn't be talking to you right now. It has its shortcomings, but it has so many advantages too! Promise me you'll use magic some day and find a way to make flying safer for everyone.

"I never told anyone this, but there were times when I felt like I should give up. Why should I live as an invalid when I was so young? Everyone else got to be normal. But every time I felt like running away from things, (he winked at me here, like it was a joke now that he couldn't run. I glared at him through my tears) I remembered you guys. I remembered why life was worth living. Life is hard and unfair sometimes, but if you enjoy all the little things, you'll find it so much more pleasant. And someday, you'll look back and realize the little things were quite significant after all."

Rupert could have given up. He could have decided he was useless. But he still attends Quidditch matches and writes reviews for papers as a living. He still helps Mum around the kitchen. He still helps Dad with his work. He helps Bilius. He does it all…using magic. He could have become depressed and sulky and unpleasant. Instead, he chose to look at the bright side of life. With a brother like him, who am I to think life is unfair? Who am I to think magic is useless?

I_ will_ find a way to help him fly again. I promised him immediately that I'll find a way to prevent anyone else from suffering as he has done.

I can use magic, after all.

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><p><em>The next two entries were written as if in a hurry or excitement. The words were all scrunched together as if Arthur had been extremely eager to get the idea on paper…<em>

13th November, 1964

Today, I learned about aeroplanes in Muggle Studies. Muggles are ingenious! Unfortunately, we did not learn how these aeroplanes work, but the idea is wonderful. Our teacher said Muggles can fly them in bad weather and still not crash into anything. I must learn more about them. If I can somehow make broomsticks like them, no one will crash into things anymore!

6th February, 1965

Molly bought me a Muggle radio for my birthday! While I was twiddling the knobs, I came across an announcement. It was called a weather forecast. They predicted what the weather would be like over the next two days. Why don't wizards have that? Rupert would have known about the blizzard. I have to find out how they predict the weather. Honestly, Muggles seem to be far more magical than us wizards! They're ingenious! The Hogwarts library doesn't have many books on Muggle inventions, unfortunately. Maybe when I can Apparate in a couple of years, I'll go to a Muggle library and find a few nice books on aeroplanes…

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><p><em>Arthur's eyes clouded with emotion as he remembered how he'd felt when he'd written the next entry. It had been a long summer…<em>

1st September, 1967

I didn't really want to come back to Hogwarts. Rupert's been quite ill all summer. Mum and Dad tried to hide the fact that he's been quite ill all last year from me. Why do they keep trying to treat me like I'm still six years old? Why do adults think that their children are too young to understand what's going on? I can see the worry on their faces. I know Bilius is coming home from Bulgaria this weekend just to visit Rupert. I know Rupert's not getting better and there's no use pretending otherwise. They're taking him to St. Mungo's again today.

We just have to hope and believe in magic – like Rupert's taught us.

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><p><em>The next entry was written so shakily, it was barely readable. But it was hard to tell whether the shakiness had been due to anger or grief. Arthur's eyes welled up as overwhelmingly sorrowful memories hit him.<em>

10th March, 1968

Rupert's gone. He didn't make it. Apparently, the Healers had told him he had only about twenty years left after his accident. They had told him he had damaged his spine too badly to live any longer. He had known he was going to die and he never said anything to any of us!

He promised Bilius he'd stick around until _I _grew old.

Liar.

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><p><em>The following entry looked less yellowed than the others and the image of the words from the previous adjoining page were pressed into it. It was obvious that a lot of time had passed since the previous entry…<em>

25th June, 1978

It's been over ten years since I last wrote in this diary. It's been ten years since Rupert…

The war is getting worse. So many people are dying everyday for no reason other than a lunatic's whims. Yesterday, Gideon and Fabian joined the list of those who aren't coming back. They went down like heroes last night. We only received the news this morning. Molly has been distraught. They never told her they were fighting last night. They knew she was tired enough from watching all the kids and they hadn't wanted to add to her worries.

Are all older brothers the same? They believe their younger siblings always need to be happy and that ignorance is bliss. They don't seem to realize that our happiness depends on their being simply _alive._ We need nothing more. They try to keep us in the dark so we don't worry ourselves sick. Molly's brothers were just like Rupert. If Rupert had told us why he was really ill, we could have done something. We could have found someone, _somewhere_, in the world who could help him! But no, he just had to be _noble _and _caring _and make our lives easy. Don't older brothers realize that we want to be with them through sorrow as much as joy; that we want to share in every moment of their life?

However, I do understand why Rupert acted as he did now. I can forgive him for it.

I too understand now what it's like to want to protect the ones you love from everything; to shut out everything but happiness from their lives. Charlie has been learning how to fly. Unlike Bill, it's apparent that he has quite the knack for Quidditch. I had to control myself and not lock the brooms up in a shed forever. What if he grows up to be a professional Quidditch player? What if I have to lose a son to broom accident some day? I haven't forgotten my promise to Rupert. I haven't been able to pursue my "aeroplane obsession" as Molly calls it recently. There have been other things that I have to worry about. We're not well off. We're already a family of seven. There's a war going on.

Sometimes, I just want to run away from it all. I want to go away and find a way to make brooms accident-proof so that I won't have to lie awake at night in the future when my children play Quidditch. I want to go away, _far away,_ from all this madness. I want to go away and find a place where my family can grow up in safety, away from all this danger.

Then I look at the photograph of my family, sitting on my table. This is _my_ family: _my_ wife and _my_ children. The weakness passes. I am a Gryffindor. I will do whatever it takes to protect them – from anything.

It's what Rupert would have done.

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><p><em>The next entry was obviously more recent. Once again, the ink from the previous page had left impressions on this one and this new entry had been written over the images. The writing was neater, almost relaxed…<em>

1st August, 1998

The war has been over for a while now. I'm finally free to pursue my lifelong ambition! Hermione took me to the Muggle library today. It's wonderful. There are these things called computers that have all the information I could possibly need. And the books, my goodness, there are so many of them! Muggles have invented so many things. There are telephones and the postal system and eckeltricity! My favourite invention is the ballpoint pen, what an ingenious idea that is! The aeroplane is one of the most complex things I've ever seen. But I'm happy that I'm now one step closer to fulfilling the promise I made to Rupert all those years ago. There's a lot of work to be done. But I know I can do it. After all, I can do magic.

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><p><em>Arthur smiled with contentment now. He had done it. After nearly forty years, he had fulfilled his promise to his favourite brother. His smile slipped slightly as he pinned a news clipping he had just cut out of the Evening Prophet. He only wished Rupert had been there to see it…<em>

23rd September, 2000

War veteran, Arthur Weasley, in collaboration with Quality Quidditch Supplies, launched the newest version of the Nimbus. This broom is special because of all the safety measures – inspired by Muggles - it incorporates, courtesy of Mr. Weasley. He, along with Miss Hermione Granger, has been very active in introducing wizards to Muggle technology. Mr. Weasley is responsible for Hogwarts to have a section devoted to Muggles and their inventions in its expansive library. He has also set up a Meteorological department in the Ministry of Magic during the past year. This move was welcomed by wizards all over Britain who prefer to use brooms to travel.

Mr. Weasley's new Nimbus model uses spells to recreate the functions of various instruments used in Muggle aeroplanes (large, hollow metal shells in which Muggles fly). These spells now warn the flier if there are any unseen obstacles or if he is too close to any obstruction. This will greatly improve safety especially when visibility is low. The new broomstick has received much praise as a means of drastically decreasing the high accident rates. The spells can be easily turned off with a simple spell so that they can be used during Quidditch matches as well. A quick charm puts the safety spells back in place after the match is over.

Nearly a thousand orders were placed today and Quality Quidditch Supplies expects many more to pour in. Various Quidditch teams have placed orders for the new Nimbus as they can now be assured of safety during their frequent flying trips. Many promotional events and launches are scheduled this week as listed below…

_Arthur picked up the ballpoint pen, chewing on the end as he considered what to write. He didn't really know how to put down what he was feeling. In the end he decided on one short line._

23rd September, 2000

I hope you're proud of me Rupert.

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><p><strong>Well in case anyone got confused, the parts in italics happened on 23rd September, 2000. Arthur had just come home from the launch of the new Nimbus and he was reading through his old diary again before finally filling in that last entry. The parts in normal font were either letters, newspaper articles or diary entries. All the diary entries were written by Arthur. <strong>

**This is one of my entries for Morning Lilies' Photo Album Competition. The photo I'd got was the one I've described right at the beginning of the story. **

**I've never tried this style of writing before nor did I intend to make it rather a sad story, so feedback is much appreciated! Do leave me a review :)**


	6. Family Reunion

**I don't own Harry Potter.**

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><p>Charlie looked out the window of the Knight Bus. They were only still on the fringes of London, it would be some time yet before they got to Ottery St. Catchpole. It would be some time yet before he got home.<p>

It had been a long time since he'd gone home. He had left about a month after the war had ended and that had been three years ago. It wasn't that he hadn't missed his family or didn't want to be with them anymore. It was that everything had changed. With Fred gone, everything had become different. His Mum no longer smiled at him and tried to get him to cut his hair. His Dad didn't tinker with his Muggle contraptions. George never laughed, Ron looked serious; even the house seemed empty without Fred and his exuberance...everything had no longer been normal. Home just wasn't the warm welcoming place it had always been anymore. He had left to for Romania as soon as he could. His world had fallen apart; he needed to rebuild it on the foundations of something familiar and his family had never felt more like strangers than at that moment.

Now, he was finally going home again. He had taken two months' leave to attend Percy's wedding and get to know Audrey. He also had to meet his niece, Victoire, in person for the first time. He loved his job but he wished he could go home more often. The long gaps between visits made him feel awkward. He always missed out on the gradual changes that took place and ended up feeling like he was meeting new people. He felt extremely out of place for the first few days.

Charlie smiled as he remembered the day he'd left for his new job a month after finishing school. Bill had come to see him off. Percy had been forced to come down and say goodbye and he'd been holding one of his textbooks, his OWL preparations had already begun. Ron had been scared about going to Hogwarts. Ginny had been addicted to sugar quills. Fred and George had perched a pail of water on the top of the door as a goodbye prank.

He had come back home for Easter briefly though none of his siblings had been home. When he'd gone home a couple of years later for the Quidditch World Cup, for the first time, he found how much change his siblings had undergone. He'd got quite a shock time when five people had welcomed him home. Ron was taller than him, Percy had new glasses, the twins no longer liked the pail of water prank and Ginny couldn't bear the sight of a sugar quill. Goodness, they had all changed! Why, they were all walking and talking like teenagers! Who were these people? Surely they couldn't be the little dorky siblings who had looked up to him and whom he'd practically raised? He'd almost thought he was in the wrong house. It had taken him a few days to get to know them again. Sure, they'd all been sending him letters but they hadn't prepared him for such drastic changes.

Charlie tore his gaze away from the bus' window and took out his wallet. He grinned at the picture in it. He'd taken it to prevent himself getting whiplash the next time he went home and found all his siblings looking and acting different from how he remembered them as little kids. His Mum sat knitting beside the fire, his Dad in an armchair across from her, looking tired, but smiling gamely for the camera. Percy was holding a stack of papers in his lap and looked hassled. Charlie remembered how much coaxing it had taken to bring him down to join them. Bill had an arm around Percy, grinning widely. Fred, George, Ron, Harry, Ginny, and Hermione were all gathered in the middle of the room, books, broomstick servicing items, papers, exploding snap cards, a chess set, and other teenage mess scattered about them. Would this scene still be what he'd find at home, or would the mood be morbid and subdued?

He tucked his wallet away. George had a girlfriend and Percy was getting married in a month. Now, he'd have to use his vacation to get to know these new girls too.

He looked out the window again. He was nearly home. Truth be told, he was rather afraid of facing all the changes in his family. Fred was gone, for one thing. The war had definitely had an impact on them all. From their letters, they had clearly moved on but what would they be like now? Would Ginny find playing Gobstones too childish? Would Ron find playing chess too much of a reminder of the war? Would George no longer keep up the tradition of pranking him the minute he came home? Would Bill be too busy with his new family? What would Harry and Hermione be like?

For a moment he wanted to go back to Romania. He felt like he didn't belong here anymore. It was too much to face the memories of all the friends who'd died in the war. Wait, this was ridiculous, he was going home; of course he belonged there! But he was still nervous about who he'd find there.

The bus lurched to a stop.

"Ottery St. Catchpole!" called Stan Shunpike. He was still the conductor of the Knight Bus. At least some things never changed.

Sighing, Charlie gathered his bags and pulled them through the village till he reached the wonky building that was his home. Lights shone brightly through the kitchen and living room curtains and through the windows of a few rooms on the upper floor. He walked up to the back door that led to the kitchen and nearly got smacked in the nose as the door unexpectedly opened.

"Oh! Hello Charlie! I'm so sorry," she apologised as Charlie jumped back to avoid getting hit by the door.

"It's alright. I suppose I should have used the front door," Charlie said.

"Angie? Have you found the carrots yet?" A short, slim woman with dark brown hair and merry eyes stepped out of the kitchen. "Oh, hello," she added on spotting Charlie.

"Charlie, this is Audrey Harper. Audrey, this is Charlie Weasley." Angelina introduced them. "Do go on in, Charlie, everyone's been talking about you all day. I'll be right in." She hurried off to the vegetable patch.

"So you're Percy's brother, Charlie! It's so nice to meet you. You must have had a long day; travelling by Portkey from Romania can't be very pleasant. Let me help you with those. Everyone's in the living room but Molly's in the kitchen." Audrey gave him a smile and picked up one of his bags.

"Oh no, it's okay. I can manage," Charlie said, taking back his bag from her and pulling his other luggage in as well. He was slightly dumbstruck. The first person he'd been expecting to meet had been his Mum. But here were two women greeting him like they'd known him all along. Granted Angelina _did _know him, but this Audrey girl was quite at ease around him. He stepped further into the kitchen as Audrey disappeared into the living room and spotted his Mum near the stove immediately. "Hello Mum," he said, half-raising his arms, hoping for a hug and some familiarity.

She glanced around confusedly. "Oh Charlie, you're here already! Do you want something to eat? Make yourself comfortable dear, I'll be right back." She bustled out of the kitchen with two little bowls. A few minutes later, a little red-haired boy and a blonde girl ran into the kitchen.

"No, Gwanny! No food!" the little girl yelled. "Vicky, come back!" the little boy called chasing her around in a circle and back into the living room.

Charlie gaped after them. He definitely felt like a stranger in his own home now. He'd been inside for five minutes and no one had bothered to talk to him and he'd only seen a lot of new people. He poked his head cautiously into the living room. His father had his back to him and the old armchair was even more patched then before. George was sitting and talking quietly to Angelina who must have come in through the front door. George was being quiet; it seemed so unreal! Harry, Ron, Hermione and Ginny were huddled around something on the floor. Were they battle strategies perhaps? Bill was trying to catch the two kids running around; he'd hated having to run around behind his siblings when they were younger. He could see Percy's long legs stretched out on the sofa. Percy never did that! Charlie's worst fears were confirmed. These people couldn't be his family. They had all changed so much.

The kids ran his way and Bill looked up.

"Charlie! When did you get here?" he was at Charlie's side in an instant, pulling him into an enthusiastic hug. "You've gotten brawnier than ever!"

Bill was pulled away by their mother. "It's good to see you home, Charlie dear. It's been far too long. I'm sorry I wasn't paying attention when you walked in. Your little niece is a handful and Teddy's not much better! Your hair's far too long again. Are there no barbers in Romania?" Molly ended her hug with a scolding look at him.

Percy sat up with a grin, adjusting his glasses. A stack of papers was in his arms, a quill on top of them. "Ah Charlie, you're home. Have you met Audrey yet? I need your opinion on the Romanian laws on dragon claw exports. The Department's getting extremely frustrated; dealing with them." He set aside the papers and walked up to his brother, hand outstretched.

Charlie shook Percy's hand. His face was splitting into a grin. Now _that_ was more like it! He was feeling far more welcome already. "SNAP!" came a loud yell as the four youngsters on the ground all scrambled backwards. A pack of cards exploded.

"_Must_ you all play on the rug?" Molly scolded as Ron and Ginny hurried up to Charlie and hugged him.

"Good to see you haven't been eaten by the dragons, mate," Ron said.

"Up for some Gobstones, Charlie? I've missed some proper competition," Ginny said. "Oh it's good to see you." She hugged him tightly.

"Excuse me, I think I've been good enough competition considering I beat you at our last three games," George said joining the group around Charlie as Harry and Hermione shook the second oldest Weasley brother's hand.

"You cheat all the time!"

"I do not!" George protested. "Charlie! Couldn't you have come in through the front door? The bucket of water was all set up on the top of it and everything."

"You're still doing that?" Charlie asked.

"Of course, it's tradition. Hey, do you want to watch this Muggle movie later? Harry's found us some nice ones." George looked expectantly at Charlie.

"Since when do you lot watch Muggle movies?" Charlie was surprised.

"You miss a lot of stuff while you're in Romania, Charlie." Arthur Weasley hugged his son. "Welcome home, son. We've all missed you." He pointed to his chair excitedly. "Hermione's been showing me how to build an aeroplane. You have to see what I've got so far."

Charlie smiled around widely, trying to answer everyone's questions at once. He was silly to be afraid that everyone would have changed beyond recognition. The little quirks that made his family special were all still there. Sure, there were some traits that had changed but that was okay. It was all about reacquainting himself with the people he remembered them to be and getting to know the new people they'd become too. He smiled happily at the delighted look on Teddy's face when he gave him the stuffed dragon he'd got for the boy and the cute look on Victoire's face as he clasped the little moon pendant he'd got for her around her neck. He chuckled at their awed expressions as George told them far-fetched stories of Charlie fighting dragons. He looked fondly at Ron and Hermione arguing and Harry and Ginny exchanging amused looks and Bill joining in George's story. He smiled at his Dad fiddling with his aeroplane and his Mum fussing over his hair and offering him food and telling him he must go up to bed quickly as he must be very tired. It felt odd, not seeing Fred there; but he'd met Audrey and Angelina and two amazing little children. Of course, some things were different. But, change needn't be all bad.

He was no stranger here; he had just forgotten how things were. The mess, the noise, the smell of good food, the plugs and nuts scattered about, the pictures on the mantelpiece, and the crazy kids - they were all still there. This was his home and his family loved him. That would definitely never change.

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><p><strong><strong>I hope you all liked it! <strong>****Please review! **

**This was written for thefirstservant's Chinese Moon Festival Competition on HPFC for the family slice. The photo featured in this story is from Morning Lilies' Photo Album Competition.**


	7. Acting Our Age

**Thank you to all the people who put this story on their favourites and alerts lists! That does mean a lot to me, that you think this story might be worth reading more of. But, I am a little disappointed that 150 people visited this story and not a single one reviewed! Please do review because your feedback is what tells me if my writing is good or bad. **

**Anyway, thank you to everyone who read the story as well!**

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><p><em>A real friend is one who walks in when the rest of the world walks out.<em>

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><p>"Honestly, Ronald, it's impossible to fly a broomstick to the moon!"<p>

Harry grinned as he waited for Ron to reply and predictably begin another argument with Hermione. After all the horrible things they'd been through that year, they had finally managed to find some peace and quiet by the lake. They had started off with Ron and Hermione studying for their exams and finishing off some homework while Harry researched spells for the third task. Hermione had said something about rockets which had set Ron off about the real possibility of flying a broom to Mars.

"Of course you can fly to the moon. If Muggles can do it, wizards can too," Ron replied.

Hermione gave him a withering look. "And how exactly do you plan to breathe? Just because you were bragging to that Veela doesn't mean it's really possible."

"Bubble-head charm of course," came the quick reply.

Hermione sighed. "There's far more to moon flight than just breathing, Ron. You have to deal with the pressure, you have to deal with the glare of the sun and you have to deal with frigid temperatures. These are only three problems with your idea, there are plenty more that rockets and spacesuits deal with."

"Oh yeah, those funny silver suits that make Muggles look like giant bugs. Martin Miggs wore one," Ron said.

"Who?"

"Martin Miggs the Mad Muggle. He went to the moon too."

Harry couldn't help laughing out loud at Hermione's confused, exasperated expression. It was so nice to hear Ron and Hermione bickering again. It was a constant of life, one that he'd missed so much over the past year. What with Ron not talking to them and Hermione and Ron fighting over the Yule Ball and afterwards, he had missed moments like these when they just sat about doing nothing and bickering. "It feels good to be sitting here just listening to you two without worrying about dragons or dancing or merpeople," he said contentedly. He abandoned his thick book and lay back on the grass, closing his eyes and letting the sun warm him.

"You've still got the third task coming up," Hermione rebuked. "You can't relax just yet."

"Ah let us live a little, Hermione. The whole year we've been worrying about things attacking Harry or eating Harry or drowning Harry or writing mad stuff about Harry. I'm tired out," said Ron, putting down his quill and parchment and stretching out on the grass as well.

Hermione looked amused. "Harry was the one actually facing all that stuff. What have you been doing to be tired?"

"Well we were the ones helping him. That's exhausting too. _You _might like poring over giant books with minuscule print to find some way to breathe under water or getting hit by Stunners in the name of practice but I'm exhausted. Avoiding Skeeter, now that's even more tiring," Ron said lazily. He patted Harry on the head. "Don't get me wrong, mate, I'm glad to be helping you stay alive. Who'll help me survive Hermione's long lectures and have fun with me in class if you're gone?"

"Thanks Ron, you're a real friend. I feel so nice to know I'm your friend just so you can bear Hermione," said Harry, rolling his eyes before closing them again.

Hermione rolled her eyes too and smacked Ron with her notes. "Get up now, don't be lazy. Harry doesn't have exams but we do."

"Oh yeah, I'd really battle for my life in some unknown maze rather than spend a couple of hours in a nice, safe room where the most danger I'll face is getting a few paper cuts," Harry put in without opening his eyes.

"Mate, I might die of boredom while learning about Goblin wars and stuff or Mum will kill me anyway if I fail History of Magic. I reckon I'm in more danger than you right now," Ron said.

Hermione suddenly smiled slightly as she watched the two boys argue. "It feels nice to just be sitting out here doing normal student stuff doesn't it?"

"What do you mean?" asked Ron.

Hermione shrugged. "Haven't you ever felt like we've done too much as kids? I mean, Harry's faced You-Know-Who twice already and we had to go through all the obstacles under the trapdoor and we had to deal with all those Dementors last year. This year we've been through dragons and merpeople and who knows what else is left for the third task. It just feels like things adults should have to face, not teenagers. This is just…nice…to be sitting here and talking about exams and friendship."

Harry nodded. "Sometimes, when it gets really bad, I wonder what life might have been like at Stonewall High. I imagine I'd be pretty miserable and there would still be all the teenage drama to go through but at least I wouldn't be risking my neck. This year...it's been pretty bad."

Ron looked sober at their comments. He'd been one of the people who'd made Harry's life miserable that year too. "We'll help you get win this tournament Harry." He looked away sheepishly. "I was a right arse to you earlier and that's not how friends act. Friends are supposed to stick around when the rest of the world doesn't. We're going to be with you through this. We'll help you win. I'll get Stunned or hexed or go through the whole library if you need me to."

Harry smiled and nodded at him. "Thanks Ron. That makes me feel better about the task. And don't worry, if there's any library work to be done, Hermione will do it." He grinned at them both. "I was thinking yesterday, if I die in the third task, at least I know that two people will turn up for my funeral."

"You won't be having a funeral because we'll find awesome spells for you that won't let you die." Hermione looked defiant and affectionate at the same time. "What do you want to do with the prize money if you win, Harry? A thousand Galleons is a lot," she added curiously.

Harry opened his eyes and looked thoughtful. "I dunno. I never thought about it. I've been more worried about getting through each task alive. Maybe I'd get my own place away from the Dursleys."

"I'd travel around the world. There's so much to learn about magic in different countries," said Hermione dreamily. "I suppose I could begin a foundation for house elves too."

"I'd build a bigger house and get new stuff for myself. No more second hand things for me." Ron looked wistfully into the distance.

"Just think, we could do all of those things. Harry could find a new place to live and you could live with him and we could use the place as SPEW headquarters too and we could go globetrotting with the rest of the money!" Hermione's eyes were shining with this vision.

Harry coughed slightly. "You're both forgetting I need to win this thing first." He stretched his arms over his head. "Right now, I'm just happy to be lying here and smelling the metaphorical roses." He yawned contentedly.

"'Metaphorical roses?' I think you spent too much time with Hermione." Ron ignored Hermione's indignant protests and sat up. He felt about in his pocket and pulled out a packet of biscuits. He stood up, stretched – ignoring Hermione's orders to sit back down and continue studying – and walked over to the edge of the lake. "Hey Harry, watch this."

Harry propped himself up on his forearms while Hermione glared at Ron. Ron took his shoes and socks off and threw a biscuit into the water. There was a moment's pause and then a giant tentacle shot out, scooped up the biscuit and disappeared underwater again. Ron threw another biscuit into the air. The tentacle reached out and snatched the treat out of the air. Harry grinned and took his own footwear off and joined Ron in the shallows.

"Let's try this," he said. He pulled his wand out and levitated the biscuits out farther, laughing with Ron as the tentacle snapped out again and again.

"Hey Hermione, lighten up and come on out here. The books can wait. You probably already know it all off by heart anyway," Ron called out.

Hermione shook her head at their juvenile antics. Ron shook his head at her studiousness. He reached into the biscuit packet again and frowned. "It's empty. Sorry Harry," he shrugged.

Harry sighed. "I guess I'll just have to entertain myself some other way." he stooped suddenly and splashed water into Ron's face.

"Oh no, now you've done it, Potter!" Ron exclaimed. He bent down and splashed Harry back.

Hermione watched them rather exasperatedly. They were supposed to be doing their homework. Though she felt that they were dealing with things adults should, there was no denying that they were getting older. But it seemed growing up was optional to Harry and Ron.

Ron sent a veritable wave at Harry. He called out to Hermione. "Come and join us. It'd do you good to have some fun."

"Er, no thanks." Hermione returned her gaze to her book. The next minute two pairs of arms grabbed her firmly and before she could protest, she found herself being dragged to the lake.

"Take your shoes off and have some fun. The water feels really good," advised Harry.

Hermione gave up trying to resist and kicked her shoes off. She stepped into the shallows with the boys and cringed. "It's cold!"

"It's not that bad." Ron splashed some water into her face. She screwed up her eyes against the cold and turned her face away, her hands on the boys' shoulders to brace herself. "Come on, Hermione, loosen up."

"We're acting like kids," she protested but she bent down and sent some water into Harry's face anyway. She smiled slightly and squealed as he did the same to her as revenge. "But maybe it's not too bad."

"That's it. You were the one saying we were acting older than our age. Well, now we're acting our age. It's good to be immature and do silly stuff once in a while," Harry coaxed.

"Yeah, that's what friends are for, right? If you do something silly, your friends won't talk you out of it; they'll just be silly with you," grinned Ron. "Look out now!"

A splashing war begun as all three of them played about in the water. It felt so good to be normal and not worry about anything for once. Harry and Hermione nearly fell over with laughter when the Giant Squid, disturbed by all the action on the surface, sent out a tentacle and tripped Ron up. The sight of him sitting in the water with weeds on his head was just too funny. He blew the wet hair out of his face and burst into Hermione pushed a surprised Harry over suddenly, getting him completely wet too ("I knew there was a reason I liked you Hermione!" Ron yelled between bouts of laughter). Hermione had a smug look on being reasonably dry until the two boys started splashing her together. They trooped back up to the castle some time later, their unfinished homework crammed back into their bags. They smelled distinctly like lake water and the boys were wet through but they didn't care. They had their arms around each other as they walked gaily up the grounds, feeling happier and less stressed than they had all year. Not even the shadow of the third task looming over them could ruin their brief moment of adolescent silliness and the joy it had brought them.

In a corner of the grounds, Rita Skeeter smiled smugly as she looked at the photographs she'd just taken of three teenagers playing in the lake. Scandalous stories played about in her head. A love triangle perhaps? Or was Harry Potter on the verge of a mental breakdown which had prompted this foolishness? She almost giggled at the thought of the next day's front page as she turned around to leave.

She bumped right into a tall figure and stepped back alarmed. "Dumbledore!" she stammered.

"I believe I told you to stay away from the grounds, Rita." The old man wasn't showing anger as she would expect but she could sense something that made her feel far worse radiating off him – contempt. "You have no right to be spying on my students." He held his hand out. "The photographs, please."

Rita clutched the photos closer. "People would say it's my duty to inform them about the truth. If your champion is deranged or – "

"If you were to write a story about how my champion needed a few moments to be like every other adolescent in this castle; about how his friends are being admirably loyal and helping him with the stress, I would not object. However, I sense that your story will be meaningless slander; a scandalous, sensational version of a simple, pure moment of innocence. I'm afraid it is _my_ duty to protect my students. I have no wish to report you to the Prophet for your disregard of my orders to stay away from the Hogwarts grounds." Dumbledore peered at her over his half-moon spectacles. "If I remember correctly, Rita, you were a Ravenclaw. It is a pity that such a brilliant mind should engage in such lowly activities."

Rita looked away. For the first time in her career, she felt abashed about what she was doing. Dumbledore had that effect on her. She felt like she was back at school and he was chastising her for spreading vicious rumours about her fellow students. She mutely handed over the pictures, afraid of being punished.

The Headmaster sighed heavily. "If only you were giving me these out of realisation of the meanness of your actions and not out of fear of punishment. Leave, now." He watched her slip out of the gates before looking down at the pictures. He smiled at the happiness in the three faces in the photos. They had a careless joy that would not live on past that age. Harry, Ron and Hermione would face much hardship in the coming years if he was reading the signs right. He had never before hoped so much that he was wrong.

The least he could do was make sure such precious moments of friendship and joy went untainted. They would be rare soon enough.

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><p><em>A friend will never let you do anything stupid...alone.<em>

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><p><strong>I hope you liked it! Please review and let me know what you thought. Feedback is always much appreciated :)<strong>

**This was written for the friendship slice of thefirstservant's Chinese Moon Festival competition. The scene was inspired by a photo from Morning Lilies' Photo Album Competition.**


	8. Christmas Presents

**Thanks to all the people who reviewed and subscribed or just read this story so far!**

**Please read and review :)**

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><p>Bill looked up when he felt the warmth of a blanket being draped around his shoulders. Fleur sat down beside him on the front step of Shell Cottage, a blanket around her own shoulders. Bill wrapped an arm around her and she rested her head on his shoulder. They remained silent for a while, staring up at the full moon. The rhythmic sound of the sea in the distance made the scene calm and peaceful while the thin sheen of snow and ice on the ground on and on the trees sparkled beautifully in the moonlight.<p>

Bill spoke first. "Couldn't sleep?"

Fleur shook her head. "It was too cold."

Bill looked at her with a bemused expression. "Why didn't you use a couple of extra blankets or cast a heating charm?" He tugged at his blanket. "I'm not cold; I've used a heating charm. You can take this one back."

She shook her head. "Maman always said zat cold does not come from lack of heat. It comes from ze lack of a companion's warmth and love beside you."

"In that respect, I was feeling pretty cold too," Bill conceded, pulling her closer to him. "Ron's asleep?"

She nodded. "Eet is nearly midnight. He was tired enough to go to bed at ten." She gave a slight sniff.

Bill looked at her with concern. "What's wrong?"

"Eet is just - zis war is terrible. Ron is barely of age and who knows 'ow 'Arry and 'Ermione are doing on zeir own. Zey are only children. Zey should be home and zeir only worry should be about what zey might get as presents or exams or zat a friend zey are in love with does not feel ze same way. I am worried, Bill. Will _we_ ever be able to raise a family? Will we have to live in fear for ze rest of our lives? Zis should be a time for family but we cannot see our families for Chreestmas. Everyone is sad and zere is no 'appiness as zere should be at Chreestmas." Fleur looked distraught at the end of her little speech.

Bill looked at her. "I know everything feels wrong, sweetheart. Don't worry though, Harry and Hermione aren't normal teenagers, I'm sure they're getting by just fine. Ron didn't seem to be too hurt, maybe just a bit underfed. They know that they've got to do their bit to stop the war, just like we all do." He avoided her question about raising a family. Sometimes, he had the same doubts himself.

"I do not like it," said Fleur firmly. "Wars are _stupide_. People fight but no one wins. They only end up getting hurt. Eet is because of ze war zat you cannot sleep on full moon nights peacefully any longer and people cannot be at 'ome celebrating the 'oliday wiz zeir families." She reached up; her eyes full of pain and worry as she traced one of the scars on his face.

Bill placed his hand over hers as her fingers moved over his cheek. "A few scars, a little pain and a few holidays missed are bearable if it will mean that soon, we can all celebrate any holiday in peace and live without fear of attack. Harry and his friends know this. That's why they are fighting." He clasped her hand gently, feeling a little guilty. "You don't have to be here, you know. You can go home to France until this is over. You'll be safe there. It's only because of me that you're here. You - you can always go home until it's safe to come back. I'd hate to put you in danger by keeping you here."

Fleur shook her head defiantly. "We have talked about zis before. I am a Triwizard Champion. I am silly to be scared or worried. I am strong and can take care of myself. It's just hard to be strong all the time and I am fine now zat I 'ave 'ad my _moment de faiblesse_. I knew what ze situation was when I accepted your proposal and I did so wholeheartedly. Who knows how long ze war will go on and how long I will have to stay apart from you? I will not be separated from you for even a minute. If you theenk I will leave you when you need me ze most, you are mistaken. I love you and I will always be at your side."

He hugged her tightly, grateful for her words. He loved her enough to let her go if it meant keeping her safe but he knew that he would be heartbroken if she were to leave. "You aren't weak, my little flower. You are one of the strongest women I know. Whenever you feel like things are too much to handle, I'm always there to talk and help you take the load. That's not just a duty of marriage but something I will always be happy to do." he said quietly. He decided to lighten the mood a little. It _was_Christmas Eve after all. He hated seeing her unhappy and he had just the thing to cheer her up. "Come on, I have a little surprise for you."

Fleur looked curious but followed Bill inside, grimacing as she watched him perform protective spells on the door when he closed it. She knew what she had been getting into when she married him. She had known that she would feel the effect of a war that had nothing to do with her. But she loved him and if being with him meant going through a war, she would do it. He beckoned her into the living room and smiled as the clock struck twelve. "Merry Christmas," he said. "I got you a present but you can open it now instead of waiting for the morning. It might make you a little happier."

Bill chuckled affectionately at the look of childish glee that had settled on Fleur's face making her seem even more beautiful. He had noticed the little lines that had begun forming on her face because of all the stress - something even her Veela genes hadn't been able to prevent. But right now, she looked breathtaking.

"I did not theenk you would 'ave time or zat it would be safe to go out and get me somezing." She sounded surprised that he had managed to get her a present. Fleur went to the large box happily, delighted at the size of her gift. She tore through the wrapping neatly and opened the lid of the big cardboard box quickly. "A Chreestmas tree?" she asked surprised.

"I saw this picture on the bedside table last week. It inspired the gift," Bill said pulling a photo out of his pocket. "I borrowed it, I hope that's alright. You just looked so adorable in this."

Fleur nodded to indicate she was okay with him keeping the photo. She moved closer and grinned when she saw the scene. She was about eight years old in the picture and her father was lifting her up so that she could place an angel on top of a heavily decorated Christmas tree. Gabrielle was playing with some ornaments by the side and Fleur was looking ecstatically at her father as he put her down and said something to her. In the light of the candles on the tree, she looked wonderful. More than anything, she looked innocent, happy and flushed with the excitement of Christmas.

"Papa and I always decorated ze tree. He used to joke about putting Gabrielle or me on ze top because he called us his leetle angels," Fleur said, smiling nostalgically. "Maman would sometimes give me smaller presents if she felt I 'ad not been very good during ze year but Papa would always come up to my room later and give me exactly what I'd asked for. Decorating the tree with 'im was my favourite part of ze 'oliday."

"Which is why we're going to decorate that tree right here," Bill said pointing to the one in the box she'd just unwrapped. "It's not real, though. Many Muggles use these plastic trees when they can't get a real one. I got Fred and George to pick one up for me from London." He smiled at her, some of the childish happiness on her face reflected on his own. "Decorating Christmas trees together was always a family tradition. All the siblings would be home and we used to fight over who got to put up which ornaments. Since neither of us can do this with our families this year, I thought we could do this together."

Fleur jumped at him and hugged him tightly. "Zis is ze best present you could give me!" She ran to the box and Bill helped her take the tree out and stand it up in a corner. He watched her with a small smile, aches and pains from the full moon forgotten, as she picked out ornaments from the same box. No one would think that prim, proper Fleur Delacour would get so excited about Christmas. People often saw her as she projected herself to the world - a perfect lady. But to those who knew her well and whom she loved, she displayed softer, more loving sides; strong and brave and unexpectedly informal sides. That thought made Bill happy. If she was so free around him, it was because she loved him and knew he loved her back equally.

He helped her put up ornaments and decorations. Often she used magic to conjure up something artistic and delicate to put up on the tree. An hour later, Bill lifted her up by the waist so she could place the angel on the top and they both stepped back to admire their handiwork.

They stood wrapped in each other's arms as they gazed at the tree. The tree seemed to radiate warmth and friendliness and a sense of love. Fleur was gazing at the beautiful angel on the top. "Do you theenk guardian angels are watching over us?" she asked softly.

Bill kissed the top of her head tenderly. "My angel's right beside me."

She beamed up at him and kissed him gently before pushing him away. "Wait, I have a present for you too." She pulled away and Bill watched with amusement as she rummaged around under the sofa and pulled out a lumpy parcel. "I was going to wrap eet tomorrow. Zere are still a few more things to go into eet." She looked apologetic as she handed him the parcel.

He pulled apart the brown wrappings curiously and burst out laughing at the present. "Did you make this yourself?"

"I know it's not perfect. We are taught embroidery in France and I had never knit before and I didn't want to use magic. Eet is not too bad, is it?" Fleur played with her nightdress sleeves worriedly.

Bill grinned and held the jumper at arm's length. It was a little shapeless compared to the ones he got from his mum every Christmas. It was dark blue but what amused him were the wonky pyramids and cartoonish mummies worked painstakingly onto the front. Though it was far from perfect, he could tell Fleur had put a lot of effort and love into it.

She was still anxiously waiting for his opinion. "I know it's not as good as what Molly gives you every year but I thought zat since you can't exchange geefts wiz your family this year, you shouldn't miss getting a jumper and I could make it instead -"

She was cut off when Bill kissed her long and hard, the soft sweater clutched tightly in his hands. "It's beautiful," he said reassuringly. He pulled it on happily and paused when his head didn't come out of the neck of the sweater. "Er, Fleur?" his muffled voice sounded close to laughter as tugged at the neck, still seeming headless. "You're not supposed to knit the neck closed."

Fleur laughed at her mistake and cut through the wool, letting her husband pop his head through. "I'm making some of that fudge you like and gingerbread cookies tomorrow. Zey were supposed to be part of the present too."

"That's just the icing on the cake," Bill declared happily. . It made him feel good to see that they could still do something as normal as exchange gifts even in these dangerous times. The small things in life were still enjoyable and that gave him hope that everything had not changed because of all the war. Some things were still sacred and joy was not entirely lost. He led her up the stairs to their room "Come on, you must be tired. Let's tuck you in."

"Will you stay with me?" she asked. "Can you sleep? Are you still in much pain?" she looked at him worriedly.

"I can barely feel the pain when I'm with you," Bill answered honestly. "And now I'm not going to be cold anymore either. All I have to do is wear this jumper and it will give me more warmth because it feels like I'm carrying around your love in it." She smiled radiantly up at him. He climbed into bed after her. Moonlight was streaming in through the curtains as he pulled the blankets over them and wrapped an arm around his wife.

Fleur snuggled up to him contentedly and yawned. "You didn't say eef you thought we could raise a family soon. Don't you theenk we can win ze war?" she asked sleepily.

Bill stroked her hair as he answered. "I think we will."

"What makes you so sure?"

"We'll we've got a fierce Triwizard Champion on our side for one thing." He grinned down at her.

Fleur glared at him. "I'm being serious."

"Well it is a factor," Bill chuckled. "Glare at You-Know-Who like that and he'd probably surrender out of fear." He continued more seriously. "See, Dumbledore always used to talk about how love would win the war. I used to think that was silly, that was something that only happened in fairy tales and children's stories. But now I understand what he meant. I love you and I will do anything to ensure that you are safe and have a happy, comfortable future. I would do the same for my parents. Similarly, Remus would do anything for Dora and their child. Andromeda would do anything for Ted. My parents would do anything to keep each other and their children safe and happy. Everyone dreams of giving their loved ones joy and a safe future. They will do anything to protect this dream and their dear ones. Right now, the Death Eaters threaten this dream. People who have someone they care about will do anything within their power and beyond to remove this threat. We have so many people who love and are loved by so many others who want this war to end. With that much love on our side, I think we can do it. I think we can win."

Fleur seemed happy at that answer. "I will fight for you, _mon amour_. I will not let you go." She made herself more comfortable, curling up against Bill. She kissed him sweetly. "Good night."

"Sweet dreams," said Bill, securing her in his arms. "_Je t'aime_."

As he held her close to him, he no longer had doubts about whether or not he'd get to start a family one day. He knew that he believed what he'd said to her about winning the war. He would do whatever it took to protect Fleur. The war_ would_ end and she'd have the happy life and family they both wanted. He yawned and was surprised. He usually couldn't sleep on full moons. He had one last thought before sleep overcame him.

_It will be okay._ _It will all end._

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><p><strong>Please do review! Your feedback is much appreciated :) <strong>

**I apologize if the French bits were incorrect in grammar or spelling. I was using Google Translate. This is for the romance slice of thefirstservant's Chinese Moon Festival Competition.**_  
><em>


	9. There's No Logic In Love

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed/read/subscribed to this story!**

**Please review :)**

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><p>Ron stared out of his bedroom window at the full moon. He had told Fleur he was tired but he just hadn't been able to sleep. Every time he dozed off, he'd felt scared and restless and woken up again. He couldn't quite put his finger on it, but there was a feeling that something had gone wrong. He felt that something bad had happened to his friends. He needed to find a way to get back to Harry and Hermione. For the thousandth time, Ron wished those stupid Snatchers hadn't found him.<p>

His window faced the front of the house and movement below caught his eye. He looked down to see Fleur and Bill with their arms around each other sitting on the front steps. He looked back at the luminous moon. His heart ached as he thought of Hermione. Could the moon see her right now? Was she safe?

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><p>Hermione collapsed onto the snow the minute her feet touched solid ground. Harry dropped next to her, his wrist still firmly clenched in her hand. It was only then did she notice that he was unconscious.<p>

She scrambled to her feet again and leaving Harry on the ground, she ran around in a large circle casting the protection charms. She couldn't stay still and her hands were shaking. _You-Know-Who can't come after you_ her mind told her, trying to bring back logic into her panicked state. _He can't know where you Disapparated to_. After what she'd seen just then, however, that didn't calm her down.

She finished the last of the charms and rushed back to Harry. He was unconsciously scrabbling at his chest and moaning like he did when he had nightmares. She got the tent up and levitated Harry onto the lower bunk of the bed. She noticed that the locket was stuck to his chest and used a quick Severing Charm to get it off him and flung it into her bag. Harry groaned loudly. She tried all the spells she knew to wake him up, but nothing worked. She realised that Harry would just have to go through whatever nightmare or vision he was having until he regained consciousness on his own. She tried to make him a little more comfortable when she noticed his hand tightly clenched around his wand.

A wand that was snapped in half and was only held together by a single strand of Phoenix feather.

A wand that had helped Harry escape death countless times.

And now it was broken - by the looks of it - beyond repair.

Hermione couldn't take it anymore. She rose, walked to the mouth of the tent and sat down there.

Then she began to cry.

Hermione sobbed her heart out. They had only narrowly escaped certain death. She had faced You-Know-Who before during the seven Potters chase but that had been with Kingsley who was in charge of taking care of her. There was no one to take care of her now. If anyone found them at that moment, she wouldn't be able to defend them for long. Every sound of the night made her hear beat faster, afraid of attack. Everything was going wrong. How would Harry get a new wand? What if he never woke up from the state he was in? What was she supposed to do then? Where were they supposed to find the sword of Gryffindor? Where were the remaining Horcruxes? How many more days would they have to spend dodging death, capture and worse?

Slowly, her sobs subsided and turned into little sniffs as she calmed down. She was always the strong one. She didn't blow up like Ron or Harry. She always put on an optimistic facade, especially for Harry. She knew he was worried enough about his own troubles and she didn't want him to worry about her feelings too. Sometimes it was all just too much and she needed to let it out. Usually after a few minutes of panic and despair, she'd calm down enough to think logically and find something in the situation that would put things right. She'd find some way to improve the scenario.

_But this time, everything was going wrong._

It was times like these that she missed Ron. He may not have been able to find a solution to whatever problem they were facing but he could always cheer her up and get her calm enough to really use her reason and her "big brain" as he had dubbed it.

It was ironic, really. When it came to _Ron,_all her logic disappeared. When they'd escaped from the Ministry and he'd Splinched himself, logically, Hermione should have made sure Harry was alright first considering how important he was as the Chosen One. But she had gone straight to heal Ron. It hadn't been rational for her to run after him knowing that it could be dangerous outside on the night he'd left. But she'd still done it. When the snake had attacked her that night, the first thing that had popped into her head was that she couldn't die without saying goodbye to Ron. It wasn't logical that she should have feelings for a boy who'd teased her, been rude to her, fought with her and laughed at her so many times.

Well, Merlin help her because she didn't just have feelings for Ronald Weasley, she was head over heels in love with him.

Hermione looked up at the bright full moon and wondered if, wherever he was, Ron was doing the same thing. Did he miss her as much as she missed him? Was he safe and looking up at the moon right now too, thinking about her? She wondered if the rabbit on the moon could see him. She pondered if it could tell her.

She shook her head at her own silliness. The 'rabbit' was nothing more than a pattern of craters and it was definitely not likely to talk. See, this was what Ron did to her - he made her logical side go straight out the window.

She'd never admit she enjoyed it sometimes. She liked the impulsiveness he brought out in her. The various ways she'd made him jealous, buying the dress she'd worn at Bill and Fleur's wedding; they were all decisions she'd made on the spur of the moment because she knew they'd affect him.

She knew many people would call it illogical that someone as smart as her should go out with Ron, mediocre as he was considered by most, or that she should be dating him when he bickered with her all the time.

But all those people didn't know Ron like she did. They didn't see him put an arm around her and give her a squeeze when she was upset. They didn't know that he bought her chocolate frogs just so she could collect more cards and learn about famous wizards. They hadn't seen him white-faced and tight-lipped as he caressed her hand when she'd been Petrified (or so Harry had told her). They didn't see the spark of jealousy in his eyes when she talked to other men he didn't trust. They didn't know that she'd caught him reading some of her Muggle Studies books in an effort to understand more about her world. They didn't hear the pride in his voice when he told others about her achievements. They didn't hear the fondness in his voice when he called her a bookworm. They didn't see the promise in his eyes that he wouldn't let her fall when they played Quidditch.

People called his jokes crass and childish but they didn't understand that he was making an attempt to lighten the mood and get people to think of a solution to whatever problem they were facing. When he made fun of her, people thought he was rude but then, they didn't know how he never let anyone else tease or be rude to her. Everyone had thought he was being silly over the Scabbers issue. Hermione had seen it as a mark of his loyalty to those he loved - even if it was only a rat. Not many people had seen how much of a Gryffindor Ron was. He'd gone into the Chamber of Secrets to save his sister. He'd gone into a lair of spiders to help Hermione. He'd followed Harry through every mad adventure, risking his life, because that was the kind of person he was. All the people who spoke ill of Ron hadn't seen him stand up for his friends and what he believed in. They hadn't seen him do whatever he could to protect them.

They hadn't seen the love in his eyes when he looked at her.

Hermione pulled out a photograph from her pocket. It had been taken at Bill and Fleur's wedding. In the picture, she and Ron were dancing and he was looking at her admiringly. She said something and he replied instantly. It would have turned into another round of bickering but Ron's gaze was suddenly drawn over Hermione's shoulder where Viktor Krum was eyeing her. Ron immediately spun her around as she laughed happily and blocked her from Viktor's view while she was oblivious. She smiled slightly as the little scene played over and over, noting each time the glint in Ron's eyes.

She would never admit it, but she liked it when Ron got jealous. She liked it when he gave other men the 'she's mine' look and then looked at her with such emotion in his eyes. It made her feel appreciated and wanted and _loved_. After all, wasn't that what any girl wanted - to be loved for everything she was?

Hermione looked back up at the moon, wishing it would somehow draw Ron to her like a magnet. She suddenly felt closer to him though she had no idea where he was. She'd just beaten all the odds and escaped death; she still had a chance to talk to him again. They were just a moon apart. They would find each other. There was too much incomplete business between them for her to just give up on him.

Harry was beginning to moan louder now. It sounded like his nightmare was getting worse. She stood up and blew a kiss at the moon. If Ron was looking at it too, maybe it would reach him. Once again, she acknowledged that her thought had made no logical sense.

Then again, logic was an attribute of the brain. It had no part in matters of the heart.

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><p><strong>So what did you think? Did I write Ron's character well? How about Hermione? Do review and let me know :) This was for the separation slice of the moon festival.<strong>


	10. One Little Lie

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><p>"You," said Voldemort, and there was a bang and a small shriek of pain. "Examine him. Tell me whether he is dead."<p>

Narcissa gave a small, almost inaudible whimper as she scuttled forward like a scared rabbit. She dropped to her knees beside the fallen Potter boy and turned the seemingly lifeless boy onto his back. A wave of nausea nearly overcame her as the thought of Draco lying somewhere on the grounds just as devoid of life came to her mind. She swallowed her fear and placed her fingers over Potter's nose to check for breath, she pulled down an eyelid and finally, her hands made their way to his chest and came to rest over his heart.

Her own heart nearly stopped as she felt the boy's heartbeat quicken with the trepidation that his ruse had been discovered.

Time came to a standstill for Narcissa at that moment. Potter had been in the castle all night. Surely he would know if Draco was still alive.

Narcissa realised that she was faced with a choice that could change everything. If she declared that the boy was alive, the fighting would begin again. She and her husband were both wandless and would not been allowed to join the battle. She wouldn't be able to find Draco and get him away from the clashes if she wasn't allowed to enter the castle. Potter had somehow lived through the Killing Curse twice now. What if he escaped again and the chase started all over again? Draco could be taken hostage by the Hogwartians before she could get to him.

She considered what would happen if she revealed that Potter was alive and somehow, he really did finally die in the battle that would ensue. The Death Eaters and the Dark Lord would be free to take over. She would be honoured and the Malfoys could go back to living the life of aristocracy once more. Purebloods would be respected and feared. Her world would be Utopian if her side won. The Dark Lord would march into Hogwarts with Potter's body and she would be allowed to go with him. The fighters on Potter's side would be too dejected at his loss to stop any of them and she could find Draco unhindered.

That was when it struck her. _Potter had to be dead_. The only way she would be permitted to enter the castle without another battle occurring was as part of the conquering army. The only way she could get to Draco before any more fighting broke out was if Potter's body was paraded up to his friends and allies as the Dark Lord would want to do to crush the other side's hopes.

The problem was, Harry Potter was still alive.

Potter didn't _have _to be dead though. Everyone in the clearing just had to believe he was. She _could_ lie to her master. She _could _say that he was dead. Potter would not be as foolish as to reveal himself to the Death Eaters until he was close enough to the castle so that his friends could help him fight them all. Then, she could still go up to the castle with the rest of their triumphant gang, find her son and get him to safety before Potter revealed that he was alive and the battle recommenced.

However, were the sacrifices she would make as a consequence of that choice worth it? There were two things that could happen if she lied about Potter's death.

One, Potter could kill the Dark Lord. This was rather likely in her opinion. If the boy could survive two Killing Curses, surely he had an ace up his sleeve. In that case, she and her family would be tried and imprisoned for their crimes. She would not get that luxurious, rich life she wanted back at all. She would be sacrificing all the respect, fear and freedom her family commanded. She would no longer have the chance to have the life she was so used to. Her sister would disown her.

The second thing that could happen if she let Potter go was that he might not be able to kill the Dark Lord but he could escape. Then the manhunt would begin again but everyone would know she had lied. She would be tortured or possibly killed. Bella would call her a traitor and hate her. She and her family could run away but they would be chased and would have to live a life of fear and secret.

Either way, she would be giving up everything that was important to her - money, status, and power - if she lied at that moment. If she declared the boy to be dead, she would be sacrificing everything that meant so much to her and that was in her best interest.

She remembered suddenly something that her cousin Sirius had said to her in school. She had mocked him for joining Dumbledore's side of the war and he had proudly proclaimed that wars were won by the side that was ready to make the most sacrifices to ensure the protection of their loved ones and their ideals. He said he joined because he was sure they would win someday. Sacrifice would bring victory but it took bravery and love and loyalty - none of which, he had sneered, people like her had.

Only now did she understand that. The Death Eaters were powerful but they were selfish cowards. If their lives were threatened, they would happily abandon all their ideals and run. Her Slytherin instinct was telling her to leave her son to his fate and save herself by letting the Dark Lord kill Potter right then. Her maternal instinct was much stronger. Yes, protecting Potter would probably mean that her side would lose and she would end up in a life she despised; but right now, that didn't matter to her. She _could_ save herself but if giving up all her pureblood dreams meant she could have a chance to save her son, even if it meant that her side lost, she would do it. Her ideals, her reasons to fight in the war were no longer pureblood supremacy; they were to protect her family at all costs. Was she willing to sacrifice all the things that she craved in order to uphold this ideal? She thought of the photograph of Draco she carried in her pocket. Nothing was more important to her than her beloved son and husband. She loved her family enough to forgo anything as long as she could ensure their safety. Sirius was right. Sacrifices would bring victory. Narcissa no longer cared whose victory it would be; she just wanted the war to end. She didn't care about what the aftermath would be. All she cared about were Draco and Lucius. If one single lie would get her into the castle, if protecting them meant giving up what she'd believed in and wanted her whole life, then so be it.

She bent over the Potter boy, glad that the setting moon was obscured by smoke and clouds, making the clearing darker at that moment.

"Is Draco alive? Is he in the castle?" Her heart thudded as quickly as the boy's as she waited for his whispered answer.

"Yes."

That one soft word made her decision final. She didn't care about the consequences of her choice, of the lie she was about to utter anymore. The Dark Lord could go to hell for all she cared as long as she got to see Draco again. Her small sacrifice of a few luxuries and riches was definitely worth it.

She straightened up and looked at the anxious crowd. "He is dead!"

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><p><strong>So what did you think? I would really appreciate it if you left me a review :) <strong>**I hope I wasn't too confusing or beating around the bush or repetitive in this chapter because it seemed a little patchy to me and I'll probably get around to editing it sometime...**

**This was for the Sacrifice slice of the Chinese Moon Festival Competition. I know the photograph in this particular chapter was barely there but I just couldn't fit it in with everything else...Still, I'd love to know what you thought about this! **


	11. Starting Over

**I love challenges that make me write about new people! **

**Thanks to all the people who reviewed the previous chapter or subscribed or even just read this story (though I would love to get a review from you too!)**

**Please do review! I hope you like it!**

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><p>Andromeda sat by the Black Lake. Her hands were clamped around her knees as she stared absently into space. It had been nearly four months since the final battle and the sounds of the earnest rebuilding efforts reached her ears. Hogwarts was ready to reopen the following morning and everyone was scrambling to finish the restoration of the castle. Andromeda hadn't offered to help. She had become withdrawn and silent for the past few months, devoting herself to little Teddy's care.<p>

The thought of the little boy almost brought tears to her eyes again. She wiped them away firmly. She was tired of crying, she didn't have the energy for it anymore. She just wanted to go home and curl up in Ted's favourite chair with Dora's favourite shawl and yes, even Remus' favourite book. She missed them; she missed her family so much. It wasn't fair that almost all of the few people who loved her should be taken away from her at once. It wasn't fair that she should never get to have a proper family. She'd been disowned by the Blacks and now this. She had no one left.

She came to Hogwarts at least once every day. Since she wouldn't be allowed in as often while the term was going on, she had taken the opportunity to sit by the lake that day and say goodbye to her daughter. She felt closest to Dora here at Hogwarts, closer even than at her grave. This was the place her little girl had grown up and enjoyed herself most. This was where Dora had been _lived._

"You always loved sitting out here. You enjoyed the privacy it gave you and Ted Tonks."

Andromeda turned her head away from the familiar voice that broke into her thoughts. She heard Narcissa settle herself on the grass beside her but she continued to ignore her. "The last time we were here, you were saying goodbye. You were going to get married to Ted Tonks in a week and you got Bella and me to meet you here," Narcissa said after a few minutes.

Andromeda turned to face her, looking straight into Narcissa's eyes. "I'm saying goodbye now as well, Narcissa. I'm saying goodbye to my daughter," she said, her voice hard. "The difference between then and now is that this time, I'm actually saying goodbye to someone who loved me. But the parting that happened then is as permanent as the one that I'm going through now." She turned her back to the blonde woman firmly, waiting for the rustle of the grass that would indicate that she had left.

"I'm not leaving, Andromeda. I'm still as stubborn now as I was when I was eight and you tried to force me into that horrible, lacy green dress." Narcissa settled herself more firmly on the ground.

_Why was Narcissa doing this to her?_ Andromeda wondered. Couldn't Narcissa see she wanted nothing to do with any of the Blacks anymore? Couldn't she see that she was only reminding her of Bellatrix, the sister who'd killed her daughter? Andromeda had tried her best the past few months not to remember either of her sisters. She had been quite fond of little Narcissa who looked up to her all the time. One of the reasons she'd never wanted to be part of the Order was because she knew wouldn't be able to fight Narcissa. She would always remember her as the little blonde girl with the big blue eyes who would beg her to read her one of those Muggle fairytales or braid her hair into unladylike pigtails when their mother wasn't watching. Bellatrix, however, had been cold and cruel even when they'd been growing up. Bella had never let her two younger sisters enjoy themselves; she had always tried to spoil their fun.

And now she'd spoiled Andromeda's whole life.

"I don't want you to stay," snapped Andromeda.

"I'm not asking for your permission."

Andromeda whirled around, her eyes blazing. "What do you want Narcissa? You and your friends have already taken everything, _everything _that I held dear. You can't be here for my company, you and Bellatrix made it abundantly clear that you wanted nothing more to do with me the last time we were sitting here – the time I was saying goodbye as you so well remember."

"You obviously don't remember that time very well because if you did, you'd know that I didn't say a word. Bellatrix did all the yelling and the condescending speeches," Narcissa shot back. "_I_ sent you a card with a narcissus attached in the evening. I'd written – "

"'I'll miss you, Andy', I remember," Andromeda sneered at her sister. "Didn't miss me so much though, did you? I haven't got so much as a Christmas card from you for the last twenty-three years. Probably been too busy plotting how to murder Harry Potter and how to purge the muggle-borns out of the world."

"I'm not one of them," protested Narcissa. She pulled her left sleeve up and displayed her bare forearm. "I'm not a Death Eater." They were both on their feet now, glaring at each other.

"But you didn't stop them either. You just stood by and watched and even let your own son join them and commit heinous crimes."

"You didn't do anything to stop them either! You weren't even in the Order!"

Andromeda stepped back, feeling as though she'd been slapped in the face. The thoughts that haunted her every day nearly overwhelmed her at that moment. She was always so Slytherin at heart, so concerned about her own safety that she had refused to join the Order. She had been so selfish that she didn't let Ted join either because she hadn't wanted him to get hurt. She didn't care about all the other husbands that might get hurt because she hadn't wanted to give up hers. She hadn't offered her own help, she'd opposed Dora joining, and she'd opposed her daughter marrying a werewolf even though it wasn't that different from her marrying a muggle-born…_she hadn't done anything to stop them either._ Perhaps if she had, they'd all be alive. They might all have been there with her, mourning the loss of their friends, but still together and looking forward to their new lives. It was her own fault she'd lost all her family.

Andromeda's shoulders slumped in defeat. "What do you want, Narcissa? Why are you here?" she asked tiredly.

"I want to get to know you again, Andromeda. I want to be your sister once more." She withdrew a stack of letters, neatly bound from her pocket and handed it to her older sister.

"What's this?" Andromeda asked curiously.

"Christmas cards," Narcissa replied with a wry smile. "They're letters I wanted to send you for the last twenty years. Bellatrix wouldn't let me owl them. She'd always intercept them before they reached you. I found them in her room the day she died. She's not here to steal our sweets or force us into those itchy dresses that mother wanted us to wear or tell us how to stand and sit and bully us into doing whatever she wanted anymore, Andy. The battle…well it's taught me exactly how much my family means to me and what I'd do for the people I love. I'd be honoured if you agreed to be a part of my family again. We were under trial yesterday and were pardoned under the condition that we no longer make contact with anyone known to be a Death Eater. Lucius, Draco and I have agreed that the ruling is for the best and, well, we're trying to rebuild our lives, start afresh. We've been given a chance to turn back the clock to the point where we made some bad choices and pick the right way this time. For me, that moment was when you left and Bella began controlling every aspect of my life. But it's different this time, Andy. She's the one that's gone now."

Andromeda was silent for a while. "It's going to take time. I won't be able to just jump back in and trust you again."

Narcissa nodded. "I just want another chance. I'll agree to whatever you want to get it."

Andromeda extended her hand. "I'll see you again soon I suppose."

Narcissa nodded again and shook the proffered hand. "I'll send you an owl."

_Three days later…_

Andromeda strolled around the grounds, a glass of Butterbeer in her hands. The war memorial on the Hogwarts grounds had been finally inaugurated. It stood out on the lawn, but Andromeda found that strangely appropriate. Everyone who had died fighting deserved to be well-known, not hidden away amidst dusty records of death in a mouldy old library. A wall had been built beside the monument. It was plastered on both sides with snapshots. She looked up at the photographs pinned to the wall. They were mostly memories of all the martyrs. A flash of colours caught her eye. A lump rose in her throat again as she gazed at a photo of Dora on her last day of Auror training, her hair changing colours quickly to reflect her happy mood.

Andromeda moved around to the other side of the wall quickly. This side of the wall was labelled "New Beginnings". The photos were of people meeting, talking and smiling; happy to be alive. New friendships and relationships were depicted here, the general feeling of hopefulness for a fresh start evident as the theme. Her eyes settled on one photo in the corner. It was a candid shot of herself and Narcissa shaking hands by the Black Lake.

For the first time in weeks, Andromeda smiled properly. Narcissa was right. Everyone had been given a second chance to rebuild their lives and make the right choices, including her.

If it really was her fault and a result of her bad choices that she'd lost her family twice, perhaps this was her chance to finally get it right.

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><p><strong>Please do leave me a review, it would make my day! I'd love to hear your thoughts on this, especially any constructive criticism you'd like to give :)<strong>

**This was written for round one of the Fanfiction Wizard Tournament Competition on HPFC using the prompts "withdrawn", "slapped in the face" and "Black Lake".**


	12. A Promise

**A big thank you to Phnxgirl and Loserslurgy for reviewing the previous chapter! **

**Hope you all like this! Don't forget to review :)**

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><p><em>Forever.<em>

It was a word that scared Lily Evans.

"Lily? It's two in the morning, love. What are you doing up?" James straightened his glasses and yawned as he walked into the little sitting room of their cottage in Godric's Hollow. He surveyed the scene with bleary eyes. Lily was curled up on the couch beside the fireplace. A mug containing only the last few dregs of cocoa sat on the coffee table. A book – one of her favourites, judging by the yellowed pages and battered look – lay open on her lap. A small box stood open on the table and Lily was playing with the goblin-made gold ring that had been nestled within it, her face thoughtful.

James cuddled up next to her. "I'm glad I found you. I thought you might have done a runner when I woke up and found you missing." He flashed her a lopsided grin. "I forgot to slip that love potion in your tea last evening, after all."

"So _that's_ what's been making the tea almost palatable. And here I kept thinking you'd finally learnt how much milk and sugar to add," Lily replied with a grin to match his. The smile didn't last long and a thoughtful expression settled over her face again – something that didn't escape James' notice.

"Jokes aside, what's bothering you sweetheart? Are you nervous about the wedding? I swear I'll show up on time and get Sirius to behave and everything." He sat up anxiously. "You're not _really_ having second thoughts, are you?"

"No, no I'm definitely marrying you tomorrow. It's just…" Lily turned the ring over and over between her fingers, both of them watching it glint as it caught the firelight. It was a simple wedding band, nothing fancy at all, with an even simpler inscription.

_James and Lily Potter. 7-11-1978. Forever._

"Forever," she murmured. She looked up at him, her eyes fearful. "What if we don't make it that long?"

"It's just a word, love. Just something that fits on wedding rings." He kissed the top of her head, pulling her into him. "But don't worry; we _will_ make this – us – last forever."

"How are you so sure?"

He smiled and placed the ring on the line that separated the two adjacent pages of her book – that crack down the centre - so that half the ring was on one page and the other half on the adjoining one. Lily smiled. The ring – that simple, beautiful, indestructible, goblin-made ring that would soon symbolise their marriage – cast a shadow in the shape of a perfect heart.

"Because I love you and I know you love me," James said softly, indicating the heart. He tapped the ring. "That's why we're getting married tomorrow."

Lily smiled widely and relaxed into his arms, her fingers tracing a circle around the ring and heart. James was right. It would all be okay. How could it not, when they loved each other? There was nothing to be afraid of. 'Forever' was just another word, just another result of their love.

X-X-X

James wrapped her hands around her waist and pulled her close, kissing her gently before letting his chin rest on top of her head as they swayed slowly on the spot.

"Saving the best for later, Potter?" Lily teased, her white gown swishing around her ankles as she moved with him.

"You know me too well, _Potter_," he smirked. "Oh it does feel good to call you that. _Lily Potter_."

"I'm glad I didn't make a run for it last night," she grinned. "I'd have missed out on that _wonderful_ surname." She drew back and looked at him with a half-amused, half-reprimanding look. "Although I could have done without that prank today."

"You were getting married to a marauder. What did you expect?" he laughed.

"Alice nearly had a heart attack when she saw the penguins slide down the aisle."

"You did say it was a black tie affair. The penguins were dressed for it."

"That only makes sense in your twisted and weird marauder minds. You're entirely mad, all four of you."

"Ah but you love us anyway!" Sirius called as he waltzed by with Marlene McKinnon.

The newly married couple laughed as they hugged each other close. Lily closed her eyes and sighed. "I wish we didn't have to fight in a war and risk our lives. I wish it could be like this every day; just me and you, enjoying ourselves and the company of good friends."

"It will be," James promised. "I'll always be there with you. I meant what I said yesterday. I'll do everything I can to make us last forever."

X-X-X

"James!"

Lily's scream made him move faster then he'd thought physically possible. He tripped, stumbled, blasted wooden crates out of his way and hexed any Death Eater who tried to get close to him in his mad dash to get to his wife. "Lily, I'm coming!" he yelled. He caught sight of her in the centre of the battle raging in the old Ministry warehouse. She was moving as fast as she could, ducking and dodging spells as she threw her own. But she was severely outnumbered; there was no way she could hold five Death Eaters off alone. "Lily!" James shouted as he leapt over a fallen beam. "Altum Volare!" The spell carried him higher into the air. He grabbed Lily's hand and pulled her up with him, landing near the door.

Lily blasted the door off its hinges and they both ran out into the cool, moonlit night. Reinforcements – Dumbledore himself – were on their way. They just needed to survive for five more minutes. The river was just ahead, if they could jump in, they'd be able to hide. They were both good enough swimmers. Six sharp cracks split the air and they both dropped to the ground, putting up shield charms instinctively as Stunners and more lethal curses flew above them.

"Enough!" commanded a high, cold voice. "I wish to speak to them."

The two of them stood up slowly, looking into the face of their enemy. Lord Voldemort was strolling towards them as though meeting two nineteen-year-olds in the middle of the night by the river was a normal activity. James looked at Lily. Her face was set, her eyes burned with vengeance for all the crimes this man had committed against people like her. But he could also detect – just as he knew she could see the same in his eyes – the slightest hint of fear. He reached out and took her hand, linking his fingers with hers. "We'll be okay. We're together," he whispered.

"Forever," agreed Lily, as they prepared to face the longest five minutes of their lives.

X-X-X

"We can't do this. What were we thinking, getting married so young? We knew this could happen, James! What the hell were we thinking?" Tears streamed down Lily's face and she looked absolutely terrified. She had faced down Voldemort thrice, done loads of missions for the Order, got through Hogwarts with people judging her and hating her and had even braved the Marauders. But she'd never looked more scared in her life.

James on the other hand was smiling broadly. He placed his hands on her stomach, waiting for the days when it would become nice and round and prove that there really was a little _person_ inside. _Their_ little person. "Don't swear in front of the baby."

She smacked his arm. "How are you taking this so lightly? We're going to have a baby! Don't you realise what that means? Don't you see how dangerous this is with the war? We can't have a baby in the middle of all this!"

"Of course I understand how serious this is, Lily." James took her hands and sat her down on the couch. "But you know what? It makes me want to fight harder. It makes me want to put more of an effort into protecting the little kid and giving it a proper life." He smiled at her. "Imagine a stuffed dragon thrown in that corner and a toy broomstick zooming around. Imagine a little boy with messy black hair or a little girl with bright red hair, running around this house, and leaving toys everywhere for us to trip over. Think about raising that kid, taking it to Diagon Alley for ice cream or Honeydukes for candy. Think about the day we send him or her to Hogwarts, looking forward to all the excited letters we'll receive. Picture a little chubby hand on your cheek or a cuddly ball of baby warmth pressed into your side and round innocent eyes looking into yours when you're sad or worried. Think about the first time the child will smile at you and call you Mama." He looked her in the eye. "Tell me you don't want that. Tell me you don't want someone that will make you fight even harder. Tell me you don't want a little bundle of joy to make you smile in the middle of your darkest moments. There is never a bad time to have a baby."

Her eyes had glazed over. "We're not taking him to Honeydukes," she said softly after a while.

"Excuse me?"

"I've seen how you get with chocolate. I'm not having two kids on a sugar rush in this house." She smiled up at him happily. "We're going to have a baby!" Her tone was no longer afraid, it was ecstatic.

He picked her up and spun her round. "I love you," he said, grinning broadly. "We'll do everything we can to keep this baby safe."

She looked at him, a hint of anxiety still on her face. She paused. "You will be with me through it all, won't you? We will be together?"

She didn't say it aloud but her hesitation was enough to make James understand what she was really asking. _You won't go on dangerous missions and die or leave me out of some stupid noble idea of protecting me, will you?_ He looked at her, hazel eyes meeting green. "Forever."

X-X-X

"You know, you said the two of us would be together forever, but looks like little Harry is already taking you away from me," Lily said as she walked into the living room where James was entertaining Harry, making puffs of coloured smoke erupt from her wand. "Did I forget to slip that love potion in your tea this evening?"

He grinned as he scooped up Harry and passed the boy to his mother. "Are you sure you don't slip it into everything I eat? That might be what makes your cooking taste halfway decent," he teased back.

"I never got the impression you ever tasted anything I made. You gobble it down like you haven't eaten in days." She winced suddenly and pulled her hair out of Harry's tiny fist. "Dinner is ready, by the way."

He gave her a peck on the lips. "That's probably because I give you a little kiss every night before dinner. It's like tasting ambrosia. The flavour of everything else just becomes bland." He winked at her. Lily gave him a sceptical look. He shrugged. "It's either that or I keep tasting the Honeydukes fudge you've stashed away in the kitchen and take bites of every chance you get when you think I'm not looking."

She hit him, balancing Harry in one hand. "It's the hormones!"

"That excuse is far too old now, love." He laughed as she huffed in mock anger and carried her son up the stairs.

'_Love_', would be the last endearment to fall from his lips. The door crashed open the next minute. James skidded into the hallway; a flash of green light lit up the house and Lily screamed his name, sobbing in the knowledge that he would never hear it. She barricaded herself into Harry's room, crying, knowing that it was futile; it was stupid to think she could hold off Voldemort without a wand.

The Dark wizard blasted his way into the room and she begged. She didn't care about herself, she'd already lost one person who'd loved her and she couldn't bear to lose the other one too. She pleaded for mercy for Harry. She knew it would not be granted.

The last thing Lily saw was a picture on the wall of the nursery. It was a photograph of her and James on their wedding day swaying slowly, completely out of step to the music, lost in their own conversation.

"_I meant what I said yesterday. I'll do everything I can to make us last forever."_

_Forever._

It was a word that comforted Lily Potter.

Green light filled the room. She and James _would_ be together forever. Lily's last thought was that 'forever' wasn't just another word. It was a promise, etched into indestructible goblin gold.

A promise that even Death couldn't stand in the way of.

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><p><strong>Please do review and let me know what you thought of this! It would mean a lot to hear your feedback :)<strong>

**If the first part about the ring and the heart confused you, this is the picture that inspired this story and that scene: photos/robinhome/8705681344/in/pool-58898522 N00/**

**This was for the second round of the Canon Pairings' Competition on HPFC.**


	13. Living Nightmares

**Thank you to everyone who reviewed or followed this story!**

**So this is my first drabble. Do review and let me know what you thought!**

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><p>It's what I've always dreamed of.<p>

I look at the tattoo branded on my skin. The skull and snake glare back at me; they are as menacing as the man who burned them onto my arm. They are my ticket to glory. I was recruited not just to fill my father's place but to restore the Malfoy family's reputation.

This tattoo is what proves that I don't need my father to fight my battles. It shows that I'm not just all bark and no bite as many believed. It's evidence that we have not lost all favour with the Dark Lord. It's what makes me a man and proves our superiority over the rest of the wizarding world. It's an alliance with the stronger side –a sure way to stay alive. It's the embodiment of the ideals I was raised to believe in.

I wrinkle my nose and flop down on my bed disgustedly. I know they're empty words; teachings I repeat to myself without conviction just to keep my sanity.

I know exactly what position I hold within the Dark Lord's ranks and what my friends think of me; what they whisper about me behind my back. I couldn't complete my mission. My father botched the Ministry job. My mother isn't even a Death Eater. The only reason we're still alive is because Aunt Bellatrix decided to offer our house for Headquarters.

A photo on my bedside table catches my eye. It was taken after a Quidditch match against Hufflepuff, I remember. I'm standing at the front, Marcus Flint - I wonder where he is. Has he been forced to pick a side in this war too? - is beside me. We're all smiling - not sneering or smirking, we're actually smiling - after winning the match. Flint's grabbed my left arm and raised it above my head. My fist is clenched, two delicate wings just visible through my fingers. But my eyes are not on the snitch, or our happy grins. No, what I like about this picture - the reason it's been on my table since the beginning of summer - is my left forearm.

It's bare. Untouched by the Dark Mark.

Being a Death Eater is nothing like I thought it would be! It's nothing like the way my father said it would be! There's no glory. I get no respect. Potter's side hates me and my side laughs at me. Hell, even Crabbe and Goyle give me condescending looks. As for the safety of being on the stronger side, well, it doesn't feel safe when the murdering madman is living in my own house.

All this bloody job gives me is nightmares. I can't close my eyes without seeing Dumbledore's face. I can't sleep without waking up every few minutes with my ears ringing with either with the screams of those I've been forced to torture or Dumbledore's offer of safety.

Frankly I can't decide which is worse.

My parents aren't doing anything. We could escape; we could go to the Order and offer them information in return for safety; we could do something! But they're just too scared.

I look down at my arm again; the tattoo is dark against my skin.

It's what I've always dreamed of.

But this dream turned into a nightmare.

And I can't wake up.

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><p><strong>Please review! I'd love to hear some feedback for this :)<strong>

**This is for the Drama assignment of Fanfiction School**


	14. Mummy's Here

**A big thank you to everyone who reviewed the last chapter!**

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><p>Hannah looked down at the photograph in her hands. It was an old picture, taken when she was only seven. She and her mother were in the kitchen. A house-elf watched them nervously from the corner. She was covered in flour and her mother had what Hannah knew was biscuit dough stuck to her face and flour in her hair. Both of them were laughing despite the mess. Her mother wore Niffler patterned oven mitts and she was holding a large tray. Little Hannah was craning her neck, trying to see what was on the tray.<p>

Hannah stuffed the photo back into her pocket, pulling herself back to the present. She was sitting in the back of the room. A Ministry official stood at a platform in the front of the room, reading out the will of her mother, Martha Abbot.

Thinking about the photo again, she could almost smell the peanut-butter biscuits she and her mother had made that day. They were her favourite biscuits. They were what she ate when she was afraid of something and her mother had always made sure there was a jar of them somewhere in the house. She had even carried around a box in her purse all the time, just in case they were ever needed.

Hannah remembered the first time she had eaten them. Her mother had tried making them as an experiment but her father had hated the taste of peanut butter. Martha had laughed at his expression when he'd bit into the first one. "Guess this was a disaster then," she'd said cheerfully. She'd put them all into a paper bag and stuffed it into her purse, meaning to hand them out to the dogs later.

_"Mum!"_

_ Martha was on her way out to the village when she heard her daughter scream. She rushed to the corner of the garden where Hannah's voice had come from. "Hannah? Where are you? Are you alright?" she called out. She was standing in the shade of a big apple tree but Hannah was nowhere to be seen. _

_"I'm up here, Mum," Hannah called from above. Martha looked up to find her daughter in the middle of the tree, looking terrified._

_"Hannah! How did you get up there?" Martha exclaimed._

_Hannah's lip trembled. "I climbed up like Daddy does to get some apples."_

_"Oh Hannah, you should just have waited till he went up to get them. Come down now, love, it's alright."_

_Hannah burst into tears. "I can't! It's too high! I'll fall."_

_Martha held her arms out. "Shh, it's okay, sweetheart. Don't cry. You're going to be fine," she said soothingly. "I need you to come down just a bit so I can bring you down myself, okay? You'll hit your head if I try to get you down from where you are. Just slide to the right, turn around and slowly put your leg down till you reach the next branch. Can you do that for me, Hannah? I'm right here to catch you if you fall."_

_Hannah looked down at her mother's warm eyes and nodded, wiping her tears away. She moved towards the trunk and with Martha's directions, clambered down slowly, branch by branch until Martha could levitate her down without hurting her. The minute her feet touched the ground, Hannah jumped into her mother's arms, sobbing. Martha rubbed her hair gently. "It's alright, Hannah. Mummy's here. Everything's going to be fine." She reached into her purse for a chocolate but all she found were her peanut-butter biscuits. She sighed and offered one to her scared little daughter. Hannah had loved it and from that day, it became her comfort food._

"To my beloved daughter, Hannah, I leave this purse among other trinkets in the hope that she will remember to be brave whenever she uses it."

The Ministry official's voice jolted Hannah out of her memory. The will-reading had reached her name. She walked up to the platform and took the purse with shaky hands. It was the same one she had had when Hannah had been stuck in the apple tree. It had been her mother's favourite purse – a deep blue one with fine silver embroidery and a silver clasp in the shape of a heart.

A lump rose in Hannah's throat and tears welled up in her eyes. Her Mum had always been her rock. She had always been there for her when she needed her, when she was scared, nervous or uncertain. She always knew what to say to calm Hannah down. Well, Hannah was frightened now. The war was looming ominously upon them. Soon, she would be out there, having to fight for her life. She wouldn't be afraid of OWLs or nervous about dates anymore; she would be out in the big bad world which had far more terrifying things. And she wouldn't have her mother with her anymore. She'd never see her Mum smile at her in that kind way that made her wonder why she was scared at all; her Mum would never stroke her hair and whisper comforting words; she could no longer run to her mother when something scared her.

Martha Abbott would never offer her a peanut-butter biscuit from the purse she held in her hands again.

Hannah sniffed, reached into her pocket for a handkerchief and cursed silently when she realised she'd left it at home. She undid the clasp of the purse. Martha usually kept a packet of tissues in it at all times.

She gasped in surprise at the contents of the purse. It was filled with peanut-butter biscuits, neatly wrapped in Preserving Plastic. A piece of paper had been slipped between them. Hannah pulled it out and unfolded it, her fingers trembling.

_Dearest Hannah,_

_Mummy's here. Everything's going to be fine._

_I love you._

Hannah pressed her fingers to her lips to stop herself from sobbing loudly in the middle of the reading. Her shoulders shook as she smiled through her tears. It would be okay, she realised. Her mum was always, _always_ going to be there for her to run to and make the scary things go away.

**X-X-X**

A little stool sat by the door that led to the back of the Leaky Cauldron. On this stool was placed a box with five partitions. The staff worked devotedly to keep each partition filled with different types of biscuits at all times. Anyone could pick up a biscuit on their way into or out of Diagon Alley. Hungry witches and wizards who didn't have time for lunch picked up a couple. Sometimes, homeless wizards who couldn't afford a square meal took a few. But most of the time it was students on their first trip to the magical world beyond or young people nervous about getting to their first job interview or kids who had just visited Gringotts for the first time – anyone who needed a little comforting from the things that scared them – who took the homemade biscuits.

If you asked the hungry or homeless, they would claim that it was the butteriness or the taste or the way it melted in their mouths and reminded them of home and their mothers and safety that made the biscuits have such a calming effect on those who ate them.

But if you asked those terrified, nervous people, they would tell you that, more than the biscuits, it was the portrait of the pretty woman with the kindest eyes and the most reassuring, motherly smile – Martha Abott - that hung above the stool that melted all their fears away.

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><p><strong>Please do review and let me know what you thought! It would make my day :)<strong>

**This was for Potions Assessment 1 on Fanfiction School using the prompts purse and peanut**


	15. Her World

**A big thank you to shannononom, m0rganosity, ClaireBear1982 and my anonymous reviewer for their reviews!**

**This is a (very late) birthday gift for Lexen. I hope you like it :)**

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><p>"Arthur? Are you up here?" Molly poked her head through the trapdoor, looking around the crowded attic for her husband. She spotted him in a corner with a big trunk open in front of him. She clambered into the attic and made her way over to him, carefully avoiding stubbing her toes on the numerous trunks and boxes. Having seven children and twelve grandchildren had resulted in the little room being filled with remnants and memories of childhood.<p>

"What on earth are you doing?" she asked, reaching the dusty corner where Arthur sat. She clucked her tongue at the state of the attic. "I'm going to wage war against the cobwebs and the mould gathering up here one day," she decided. "I thought you'd like to open all the presents over tea. I wasn't brave enough to open James' or Fred's without you," she chuckled. She looked at Arthur with some concern when he didn't respond. "Are you alright, Arthur?" she asked, crouching beside him.

"Look what I found up here," Arthur said softly, indicating the big trunk in front of him. He sounded melancholy – not really the emotion Molly wanted to see in him on their fiftieth anniversary.

She settled down beside him and surveyed the contents of the trunk. It was filled with letters and postcards, she realised; received by them over the years. A few were strewn around the trunk and she picked up the nearest one. She straightened her glasses and studied the picture on the front – a beautiful view of a squat castle somewhere in Scotland on top of a rolling valley of green – before flipping it around to read the tiny writing squeezed onto the back

_Hey big sister! We decided to house-hunt for you. How does this place look? It's even got a banshee, according to the locals. You could both sing in the shower in harmony. There're loads of secret passages too. We could train all the little Weasleys you pop out to wreak havoc! The weather's great too; it's raining and foggy all the time. Oh, and there's even a little outhouse for Arthur to keep all his Muggle stuff in. We'll get the agent's address for you!_

_PS: Can you tell we're bored out of our minds? The Darkest thing up here is a Hinkypunk._

_Missing your cooking,_

_G & F_

"I remember this," she said. "They were following a man the Order was a Death Eater but turned out to be innocent. They got home before the postcard did," she chortled, smiling at the memory of her mischievous brothers.

Arthur nodded. "Look at this one," he said, pushing a personalised postcard into her hands. "Bill looks so young!"

Molly laughed at the sight of Bill, just out of school, standing with a shovel over his shoulder in the shadow of a large pyramid. He was covered in sand and had a black eye. He was visibly tired but he was grinning widely, his free hand playing with a goblet from the small pile of gold beside him.

_Hi Mum, Dad!_

_Egypt is amazing! I've had a spectacular time. I managed to get through the booby traps and find the treasure chamber in this pyramid all by myself. Dr Warner says I might grow to be one of Gringotts' best curse-breakers. I'm sending you a gold coin from the Pharaoh's collection. It's the first one I picked up in the chamber and they said I could keep it. _

_Oh and don't worry about the black eye, I just got punched in the face by a guardian mummy. They're not really dangerous; I just got caught off guard. _

_Having loads of fun!_

"There's one from Charlie too, isn't there?" Molly asked, sifting through the other postcards.

"It must be somewhere in there. It had a picture of that old Romanian ruin we visited later, I think," Arthur replied. "Look here's one from Ron and Hermione."

Molly looked at the picturesque tulip fields of the Netherlands. "That's when they went to that conference just before they were married." She held up another one. "Here's a nice shot of the Alps." She flipped it over. "This is from that vacation Harry and Ginny went on before James was born."

"And here's one from Remus and Tonks on their honeymoon." He smiled at the couple waving at them from the photograph, standing at the edge of a cliff in Ireland. "That's the only time they ever got a break."

"Look at this! This is from Eleanor and David's holiday in Istanbul," Molly exclaimed. She read out the writing on the back of the postcard she was holding with affection. "'Having a great time. Don't get caught sneaking out, you two!'" She looked up at Arthur excitedly. "I didn't know we still had this! Do you remember those two? They were our seniors in school."

"I know," Arthur replied. He looked nostalgic. "Do you remember that Valentine's Day where David had decorated the Great Hall for Eleanor?"

Molly grinned. "Those were the good old days. This one's more recent, look. It's from Percy's family trip from last year." She showed Arthur the postcard depicting the Coliseum. The back was covered with Percy's neat writing. "What's got you getting all of these out today? You could have told me you were doing this. I would have brought a broom or two up here and joined you," she said, looking around the dusty attic with distaste.

Arthur sighed. "Do you remember our wedding day?"

Molly gave him a puzzled look. "Of course I do. Why?"

"We went to that Muggle pub later, remember? The one with the loud music and the awful food? The walls were covered with all those pictures of places from around the world. I promised you that one day, I'd earn enough money and I'd take you to every one of those places. I told you I'd take you around in an aeroplane and we'd see all the wonders the world had to offer. I never kept that promise. All we've seen of the world has been these postcards that everyone else sent us. I'm sorry, Molly. I really did want to give you a good, fun, happy life and all we did was look after the kids and fight wars. Now we're almost seventy and I just feel like I didn't do enough for you."

Molly gave Arthur a stern look. "Stop talking right now, Arthur Weasley. You must be going senile if you think even for one moment that I haven't been happy with our marriage. Yes, we had our fair share of problems but you've done so much for me through all of it."

Arthur blinked. "I - I'm touched you feel that way. But if we were just a little younger –"

"Don't you regret growing old, Arthur," Molly interrupted. "You should be happy that you got to grow old with me." She indicated the postcards. "So what if Gideon and Fabian or Remus and Tonks or Marlene McKinnon or David and Elena got to travel around the world? They never got to see their kids grow up. They never had the chance to spoil their grandkids. They didn't get to experience the simple joy of a picnic with the family. Not everyone gets the chance to live a long life and grow old with their loved ones. I've had a full, happy life with you. When we got married, you also promised me that you would take care of me and our kids and keep us comfortable and happy for the rest of our lives. As far as I'm concerned, that's a more important promise and one you've kept very, _very_ well." She held his hands gently. "I don't care if we never went up in an aeroplane. There's _nothing_ the world can offer me that's more beautiful than the love I get from my kids and grandkids. You – and all of them – _are _my world."

Arthur wrapped his arms around his wife. She was right, as usual. He shouldn't be sad about growing old. He should be ecstatic that he had grown old with the most amazing woman he could ever meet. "I love you," he murmured into her hair.

"I love you too," she whispered back, holding on tightly. She pulled away after a moment. "Now come on, let's wash up and see what presents everyone's got us."

He nodded and stood up, holding out his hand to pull her up too. They went down the stairs slowly, a comfortable silence between them. "Happy anniversary, Mollywobbles," Arthur said when they reached the kitchen. "It's been a wonderful fifty years."

"Happy anniversary, Arthur. You'd better spend the next fifty years cleaning out that attic with me."

He laughed. "Maybe we could use what the Muggles call a vacuum cleaner. It sucks the dust out. I don't know how to get eckelticity up in the attic though."

Molly only nodded from time to time. She hadn't told Arthur that she _did _remember his promise of travelling around the world. She had even kept a special book that she'd hoped to fill with photographs from all the places she visited. She had found that book in her dresser that morning and shed a few tears over it. But then, she'd spotted the photos of herself and Arthur - one from their wedding day and one from the previous Christmas - sitting side by side in front of her mirror. She had burned the book then.

Molly linked her fingers through Arthur's, smiling as he beamed at her and continued rambling on about some odd Muggle contraption. She had meant what she'd said to Arthur. She knew had been blessed with the privilege of growing old with the man she loved. There was no place in the world that could make her feel sad about _that_.

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><p><strong>Please do review :) I would love to know what you thought of this!<strong>

**This was written for Round 1 of the Quidditch League Fanfiction Competition. I've used the prompts "What on earth are you doing?", postcards and "Do not regret growing old. It is a privilege denied to many." – Anonymous**


	16. Stolen Hearts

****So..I've never tried writing a pairing this odd before. Do review and let me know what you thought!****

**A big thank you to Lost O'Fallon Girl, ReadingStar, Lexen, ClaireBear1982, MandykinKC, Chasing Uncertainties, annaisadinosaur, RavenclawReality, IzzyQuagmire0907 and reppad98 for reviewing the last chapter as well as anyone who put this story on their alerts or favourites!**

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><p>"Fred? Did you hear me? We're going to Quality Quidditch Supplies. Do you want to come along?"<p>

James' voice snapped thirteen-year-old Fred out of his reverie. "Huh?" he asked, tearing his eyes away from the shop window to look at his cousins. "Yeah, er – you guys go on ahead. I'll be there in a moment."

Dominique – she was older than the boys by three years but she liked hanging out with the two troublemakers - exchanged a look with James and stepped up to Fred. She placed her palm on his forehead. "Are you alright?" she asked concernedly, though her eyes were sparkling with amusement.

"I'm fine, why?" Fred asked, bemused.

"Well, you're staring into the window of Flourish and Blotts like you've never seen the place before."

"He probably hasn't," smirked James. "The only reason he even gets his school books every year is because Aunt Angelina remembers them."

Fred smiled sheepishly. "Yeah, that's true." He glanced back at the window. "Okay, come on. Let's go over to Quality Quidditch Supplies. Maybe we can stop over at the shop later too, yeah?"

James strode up to the window. "What's so interesting in here that's got you so fascinated? I mean, I'd get it if you were drooling over something in Zonko's or the new sweet shop down the road. But this is a _bookstore_." He peered at the books propped up at the window, trying to look past the glare of the summer sun reflecting off the glass. He gave a shout of laughter. "Rita Skeeter? You've _got_ to be joking!"

Dominique elbowed James out of the way. "What? He's been staring at Rita Skeeter?"

"No I haven't!" Fred said, hurriedly, trying to drag his cousins away from the window. "I – I just thought that might be a good book."

James rounded on Fred incredulously. "Okay, first of all, there's no way you could be interested in a book that thick. The biggest book I've ever seen you read is Quidditch Quarterly and _that's_ mostly filled with pictures of players. Secondly, everyone knows Rita Skeeter only writes gossip and twisted truths. Why would you even be interested in that?"

"Might have something to do with the lady winking at him from the cover," Dominique grinned. "That's a flattering enough picture of the old hag."

"She's not a hag!" defended Fred. "She's – she's quite a lovely looking woman for her age."

"She's old enough to be your grandmother!"

"So? It's not like – like I'm _attracted_ to her or anything," protested Fred. "It's not wrong to appreciate a good-looking lady."

James and Dominique gave him a look. "Er, sure," said James. "Why don't we go appreciate some brooms instead?" Fred couldn't help glancing over his shoulder at the window one last time as his cousins dragged him away.

He was distracted all through their time in the Quidditch gear store. He had tried to stave off James and Dominique's teasing earlier but he couldn't deny that he really _did_ have a crush on Rita Skeeter. The first time he'd seen her was three weeks ago when she'd come to his dad's shop for an interview. He'd been at the counter when she'd walked in and she had literally taken his breath away. Her lips were a bright red, full and plump. Her eyelashes were long and curled and framed the most beautiful big, blue eyes he'd ever seen. It was a shame she hid them away behind those large stone-studded glasses that framed her heart shaped face perfectly. Her skin was still completely wrinkle-free and if he hadn't known how old she was, he'd have guessed she was still in her early thirties!

He'd spent the whole interview watching the way her fingers with those long, bright nails curled around her Quick-Quotes Quill; the way she would take the topmost part of that feather between those perfectly even, white teeth; the way she laughed at what his dad said (oh how he wished _he_ was the one being interviewed); the way she gave his mum a knowing look…

Fred mentally slapped himself. What was he thinking? He was thirteen and the woman was nearly sixty! He couldn't have a crush on her! He was simply appreciating her good looks as he'd said before.

But he knew that couldn't be why he'd spent hours finding old articles by her and reading passages from her interviews and books. Sure, she was a little mean in her writing. He liked a woman with a quick sense of wit and humour. A little cunning never went amiss either. And she was an Animagus too, he'd heard from Aunt Hermione. That meant she was smart and daring. That just made her more attractive.

"Hey Fred, look what I found!" James pulled him out of the corner he was sitting in, pretending to examine trading cards, and dragged him out of the shop. "Someone just put this up," he said, pointing to a large poster in the window.

"'Rita Skeeter, acclaimed author of 'The Life and Lies of Albus Dumbledore' and 'Severus Snape: Servant or Sinner?' will be in Flourish and Blotts this afternoon, signing copies of her latest book, 'Of Problems and Prodigies,' which is based on the lives of several Quidditch stars, including Krum, Moran, Bagman, Cloves and many more.'" Fred read out. "So?" he asked, turning to James with a look of nonchalance.

"So don't you want to go see Rita Skeeter and 'appreciate her good looks' some more? You won't have to settle for the paper version to wink and blow kisses at you," James smirked.

"You're just jealous because _you_ never got to meet that lady on the Muggle news you watched at your Uncle Dudley's place last Christmas," Fred countered.

James blushed. "At least she was only about ten years older than me. Skeeter's practically a dinosaur."

"I'll tell Gran you call old people that."

"Don't you _dare._"

"Lay off, then!"

"Fine," James huffed. "I'll keep your little crush a secret if you never mention the Muggle again."

"Deal," nodded Fred. "Okay, I'm –er – going to get some ice cream. I'll see you later?"

"Sure, I'll join you there later. Alastair's going to release the new European League trading cards in a while," James replied excitedly. "I'm going to wait for that."

"Okay," Fred said. He hurried up Diagon Alley on his own, occasionally diving into shops to avoid a family member – there were far too many of them roaming the street. He finally reached Flourish and Blotts. He was a little early for the signing so he slipped inside and made his way to the window where Rita's books were stacked. He knew he wouldn't run into anyone he knew here. Most of his aunts and uncles hated Rita Skeeter.

He picked up one of the books and stared longingly at the cover. There she was, the perfect woman, winking and smiling up at him. In a few moments, he'd get to meet her and talk to her. Maybe he could even shake her hands and see if they were as smooth as he'd imagined.

"That's a nice photo, even if I'm biased," said a familiar voice behind him. He spun around to find _Rita Skeeter_ herself standing there, smiling at him.

"Yeah," Fred spluttered. "You –er – ahem – you look great. In the picture. I mean – not that you don't look great right now too – you look really good right now too." He shut his mouth as she laughed – he'd made her laugh!

"Aren't you a sweet boy?" she said. She tilted her head and looked at him. Fred watched her blonde curls fall across her cheek in awe. "I've seen you before, haven't I? That's right; you're George and Angelina Weasley's kid. I saw you in the shop the other day."

She remembered him! "Yeah, I was there." Thank Merlin, a coherent sentence.

"Bet your parents didn't like that interview much. Your whole family's not very fond of me." She grinned happily at this thought. "But that's what I was going for. My readers need to know the truth after all."

"Yeah," Fred breathed. Merlin, couldn't he say something else?

"What are you doing in here? Your family would be ashamed if they knew you were here," she told him with a wink.

"I –er – I thought I'd buy the book," he said, indicating the tomes in the window behind him. "And get it signed by you."

"A rebel!" Rita said, delightedly. "My readers do love a rebel." She pulled her quill out of her pocket. She looked stunning in those bright pink robes, Fred thought. "Why don't you tell me all about yourself? What made you read my books? What does your family think? Are they going to disown you anytime soon? I bet your aunt Hermione is trying to stop you. Do you think she's being a hypocrite when she always campaigns for rights to freedom of speech and expression? Do you think she's unnecessarily censoring you when she's supposed to encourage reading?"

Fred was overwhelmed. Here he was, chatting away to Rita Skeeter. Well, granted, she was doing most of the chatting but this was better than everything he'd dreamed of. Why, she wanted to know more about him!

"Miss Skeeter, it's time for the signing," interrupted an old, balding man, coming up to them.

"Oh dear, this will have to wait. Join the line, sweetheart," she told Fred.

It was the best afternoon Fred could ever have. He got her book, he got it signed personally, he got to shake her hand and even take a picture with her (she put her arm around him!). Nothing could mar his happiness, not even getting yelled at by Aunt Hermione when the picture appeared in the paper two days later with an article about her hypocrisy. Even James and Dominique's teasing wasn't going to burst his happy bubble. He'd got to meet the most beautiful woman in the world.

It wasn't long lived, however. A few weeks later, he was at the station, ready to board the train to go back to Hogwarts. His beloved signed book and lots of other articles by Rita were stashed under his robes in his trunk. While he waited for James to arrive, he bought a copy of the Daily Prophet on the platform. When he turned to the third page, his world came crashing down.

'Rita Skeeter announces engagement to Wilbur Dawson'

Fred read the headline three times before giving in. 'Age isn't a factor in love: Skeeter' said the sub-heading. Why couldn't she have believed that about him? He ignored James and Dominique's mutters of "We have to find him a girlfriend this year," and "He's absolutely lost it."

It would be exactly two months before he got over his crush on Rita Skeeter. His classmate, Amelia Rowans played a role in that.

But he would never throw away that copy of 'Of Problems and Prodigies' signed in Rita's curly, stylish writing; her i's dotted with little hearts – one of those would be the one she'd stolen from him.

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><p><strong>Please review :) This was for Science Assessment 2 in Fanfiction School<strong>

**The photograph was supposed to be the one taken for the Daily Prophet. I had a whole description of it but it went over the word limit so I excluded it.**


	17. Lily Evans' Best Friend

**A big thank you to mischief marauderly managed for beta-ing this!**

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><p><em>Lily Evans' best friend, that girl who always hangs out with her…James Potter's childhood friend…the short girl who dated Frank Longbottom last year…Alice something…<em>

Barely anyone described her as Alice Andrews. She was just 'that girl' who hung out with more popular people. She was the quiet bookworm whom few people noticed, standing as she always was, in the shadows of her more outgoing friends. She was the invisible Herbology nerd whose name hardly anyone knew. But Alice longed to be adventurous and extroverted like her friends. She yearned for people to know her name and want to be friends with her because she was the 'cool girl'. She wanted to be thought of as exciting and fun to be around.

It was ironic that she was best friends with the two most popular students of their year – perhaps even of the whole school – James Potter and Lily Evans. Strangely, both of them enjoyed her company. James and Lily told her all their secrets and she was their shoulder to cry on. They laughed and joked with her and she was her true self only with them. It had been slightly taxing to be a friend to both of them when Lily had disliked James but once they'd gotten together earlier that year – she had been instrumental in that happening – her life had become easier – or so people thought. The thing was, Alice had a secret that she'd never told anyone: she really regretted, every single day, that she had ever helped get James and Lily together.

Alice had known James long before they went to Hogwarts. Over the years she had begun to fancy him. She had fallen for him. He had always treated her like a little sister but now, that wasn't enough for her.

It made her sad when they spent time together and all he wanted to talk about was Lily. They were wandering in the grounds aimlessly one evening that September and James was, once again, describing his latest "attempt at romance".

"She didn't like the flying pigs though," James said ruefully. A mischievous grin lit up his face. "I thought she'd smile because she'd thought that us getting together was as impossible as pigs flying once."

Alice laughed. She had found it funny and she'd got the joke immediately too, unlike Lily. "I don't think she appreciated the fact that they all had 'Lily' stamped on their sides," she told him.

"Ah Alice, tell me how to make her smile again then." He looked at her with pleading, puppy-dog eyes. "You know her so well."

Alice stumbled over a stone, not noticing it while staring into those irresistible eyes. He reached out and caught her immediately and she tried no to shudder at the pleasant tingles that ran up her spine. He twirled her around, grinning. "Come on, Alice. Tell me the secret to make Lily happy," he begged.

_Why don't you want my secret instead? _Alice wanted to scream at him. She forced herself to shove him away, even though she wanted nothing more than to pull him closer. "Get her some roses. Don't make them do something stupid like sing or squirt water at her. She likes clichés so just take a bunch of roses – pink ones are her favourite – and apologise," she advised.

He smiled at her. "Thanks! I'll do that right away. Thanks a lot, Alice!" He sprinted away towards the greenhouses instantly.

Alice watched him go, wishing she could summon up the courage to say something to him about how she felt. She deserved that kind of love too, didn't she? She deserved to have that exciting, heart-racing, higher love that Lily had.

The problem was, she loved Lily too. She was her best friend and taking James away from her would be the height of treachery. She couldn't do that to Lily.

**X-X-X**

It was only two months into their relationship that the fighting started.

At first, Lily and James had petty arguments. No one paid much notice to them because that was what James and Lily did – they argued. Alice spotted the cracks though. She wasn't their best friend for nothing. She could see the differences that might ruin their relationship. It wasn't long before they had their first real, full-blown fight.

"Hey Alice."

Alice nearly fell out of her seat, startled. James slumped into the chair opposite her and rested his head on his arms, looking thoroughly morose. It tore at her heart to see him like that. She reached out and patted his head. Was it inappropriate to want to run her fingers through his hair at that moment?

"I saw the fight. Don't worry, it's going to be okay," she told him.

"She called me an arrogant, immature, senseless little prat. She hasn't called me that for two years now."

Alice looked at the sadness in his face. She wondered how Lily could ever do this to him. She surely wouldn't have hurt him in any way if she'd been going out with him.

But then she remembered the way Lily had cried her eyes out while she held her in their dormitory just half an hour ago. She remembered wondering if James was really as wonderful as she thought him to be if he could hurt her best friend like that.

"Trust me, it's going to be okay. I'd stay away from her for a while though. She needs her space right now. You wait, by tomorrow, the two of you will be walking down to the Great Hall holding hands again," she said.

He raised his head hopefully. "You really think so?"

"Yeah, I do. Look, this is what I think you should do to apologise." And for the next hour, Alice talked to James. She consoled him and gave him advice and even insulted Lily for a few minutes with him. She felt guilty about the bitterness she felt, just as she had when she was consoling Lily earlier. They were her friends, her best friends. It was her duty to help them and feel happy about it for Merlin's sake! She had to give up on James. It wasn't right. She couldn't steal her best friend's boyfriend.

She wanted the kind of love James gave Lily, but she wanted James and Lily in her life too. And she knew she couldn't have both.

**X-X-X**

Alice jabbed her quill into the table moodily. Sure, James and Lily were going out, but did they really _have_ to give each other those _looks_ and snog so heartily in front of her? Did they keep having to remind her that they had something she didn't?

She had retreated to the library as soon as she could. She had brushed them off rather rudely when they'd asked if she wanted to join them for a game of Exploding Snap but she didn't care. She reached into her bag, scowling, and pulled out her Herbology book. She might as well get some work done and take her mind off things. She flipped the book open to a random page and a photograph fell out. It had been taken just after James and Lily had started going out. She was standing between both of them and all of them were laughing at the camera, arms around each other.

A sudden wave of vindictiveness overcame Alice. She ripped out the part with Lily and tossed it aside. Tears stung her eyes as she looked at the remaining picture. It was almost as if she and James were a couple.

She felt ashamed of herself a moment later. It wasn't James or Lily's fault that she was feeling sad, not really. They didn't know how she felt. She couldn't blame them. She wasn't this mean, spiteful girl. She had been horrible to Lily for the past few days and she knew Lily was hurt by her behaviour. They were her friends. They tried to hang out with her as much as possible even now. They noticed her when no one else did. She had to be a better friend to them too.

She reached into her bag and pulled out a roll of Spellotape and started mending the photograph. When she was done, she turned it over and made two lists – one with reasons with why James should date Lily instead of her and one with reasons why he shouldn't.

There was only one item under the list of reasons why he should. But that reason outweighed all the reasons that he shouldn't.

_Lily's my friend. He makes her happy. That's all that matters. Friends don't get in the way of each other's happiness._

**X-X-X**

"It's a hard task, really, this dating Lily business." James and Alice walked along the lake shore, hands stuffed in their pockets to protect them from the chilly wind.

Alice looked up at him, trying not to blush at the sight of his handsome face with his tousled hair. "It shouldn't be. You two were getting along so naturally in the beginning. What changed now?"

He shrugged. "I don't know. It's just not as easy anymore." He raised a hand to run through his hair and stopped halfway. "I haven't done this in ages," he complained, indicating his hand, still frozen on its way to his head. "She finds these little faults that she wants me to correct but some of them…well they're just who I am. I can't be _perfect_ for her."

Alice hated to see him miserable. She looked around for something to cheer him up when a steady gust of wind started up. The leaves of the beech tree began falling, all red and yellow and brown. "Come on," she said. She grabbed his hand and ran over to the tree. She spun him around on the spot, face upturned to the falling leaves, laughing. He reluctantly began to smile but finally conceded to a large grin at the sight of her innocent, impulsive actions. They both collapsed onto the leaf-strewn grass, out of breath.

He turned to face her. "You're so much easier to be with Alice," he said.

Alice's heartbeat quickened. "Why don't you go out with me then?" she muttered.

He cocked his head to the side. "I'm sorry, I didn't catch that. What did you say?"

This was it. She could just tell him now. It was a romantic setting, he was irritated with Lily, she could get the love she wanted...what else could she hope for?

But Lily had been the first friend she'd ever had. Lily had been the first person who had seen her and liked her for who she really was.

She could feel that photograph in her pocket. _"Friends don't get in the way of each other's happiness."_

"Nothing, I just said you need to try harder with Lily."

**X-X-X**

"He broke up with me!"

Lily threw herself into Alice's arms, sobbing. They had been up in the dormitory for nearly an hour now. Lily had cursed James, insulted him, complained about him and the things she'd had to do for him and she'd finally reached the apologetic state.

"Lily, darling, to be fair, when he said 'Let's break up then,' you said, 'Fine!'" Alice looked confused, exasperated and distressed all at once. After two more months of fights, Lily and James had had a big shouting match in the Entrance Hall that evening, culminating in a heated proclamation of the end of their relationship.

"I couldn't say anything else at that moment!" Lily protested. She stood up, agitated. "Oh Merlin, I have to go apologise! I didn't mean it, I was being stupid." She started towards the door of their dormitory but paused halfway. "Alice, I can't face him. He's going to be so angry. I can't do this!"

Alice led her back to the bed. "You sit here," she instructed. "I'll go down and soften James up a bit for you, is that alright?"

Lily nodded tearfully. "Thanks Alice. You're the best friend I could ever have."

Alice smiled back and strode down to the Gryffindor Common Room. She spotted James' head at a corner table. The room was nearly empty. Even his friends weren't there. They'd probably left him alone to give him some space. She wondered if she should approach him then. She walked up to him tentatively. "James?"

He nodded towards the empty chair beside him. "Have you ever wanted a boyfriend, Alice?" he asked abruptly.

She was surprised but she answered anyway. "Yes, I have."

"Like Frank Longbottom?"

"No. I want someone more adventurous, more dangerous and exciting."

"I bet you'd treat him well." James looked at her, his eyes red from crying. She'd never seen him cry before. She moved closer and put her arms around him, letting him drop his head onto her shoulder. She could feel more tears dampening her robes but she didn't mind. She just stroked his back soothingly. "I bet you'd – you'd give him – happiness – and – and love. That's all – I – ever asked for," he hiccoughed, uncaring of who was watching.

"James, I –"

"I bet she doesn't even care, does she?" he interrupted. "It would be just like her not to care. She's never shown me the kind of love I've given her."

"James I really think –"

"Why isn't it easy Alice? She's all I ever wanted. She's the only one I thought was capable of making me happy but she seems to find it easier to hurt me again and again. I thought we were past that but it just hurts worse now." He raised his head to look at her. "Tell me, Alice. Am I so unlovable?"

Alice's breathing quickened. She was supposed to tell him he was wrong. She should tell him how remorseful Lily was at that very moment. She should tell him to get back together with Lily, that everything wasn't over. She had to be loyal to Lily.

_Friends don't get in the way of each other's happiness._

"_You're the best friend I could ever have."_

"_You're so much easier to be with, Alice."_

"Can't I ever find love?" he asked unhappily.

"Maybe you've been looking in the wrong places," Alice breathed. There was no turning back now. She leaned forward and closed the gap between them, her lips capturing his. She put every single hidden feeling she'd had for him into that kiss. His hand rested lightly on her waist for a moment before he stood up abruptly. She looked up at him, breathless, waiting for a judgement.

He looked at her for a second, dazed, and then walked away quickly. Alice's heart sank, but then he paused at the bottom of the stairs to the boys' dormitory. "I'll see you tomorrow?" he asked hesitantly, hopefully.

She nodded, smiling slightly as he disappeared up the staircase. She felt lightheaded at her sudden impulsiveness and it's results. Her face fell immediately however, when she saw Lily striding up to her, her face thunderous.

"Lily – I –"

"Don't even bother," Lily said dangerously. "I saw everything – _everything._ How could you, Alice? I thought you were my best friend! I thought I could trust you! I needed you more than ever now and this is what I get? This is what you do to me?"

"Lily – no –listen –"

"I'm done with you, Alice Andrews. I don't want to talk to you ever again. Goodnight." Lily stormed back up the stairs. Alice knew that the goodnight had been a goodbye. She and Lily could no longer be friends.

Alice collapsed into the chair, crying silently. She hated herself for destroying her best friends' relationship and any chance of revival it might have had. She hated herself for giving in to what she knew was wrong. She felt guilty that a small part of her felt absolutely elated, even now, that James had kissed her back. Worst of all, she realised now that her friendship with Lily meant far more to her than her attraction to James. And she'd thrown it away.

Everyone was staring at her. From the next morning, Alice knew she would no longer be invisible. She'd get the fame she'd always wanted. She would no longer be James Potter's childhood friend or the short girl who dated Frank Longbottom. She'd be popular and everyone would know her name.

But Alice wanted nothing more at that moment than to turn back time and be unknown again. She'd rather be "Lily Evans' best friend" than Alice Andrews.

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><p><strong>Please do review and let me know what you thought! It took a lot of effort to get this right so I would love some feedback :)<strong>

**So this is meant to be more about the conflict Alice feels about being James and Lily's best friend yet being irrevocably attracted to James. Alice is one of my favourite characters so I don't want to make her come across as a b****. I hope I managed to bring out her confusion and guilt more than as a horrible boyfriend thief. She's a nice girl, but she just gives in to temptation like any other teenage girl might. I hope that came across well and this story wasn't too confusing or abrupt.**

**This was for the Quidditch League Fanfiction Competition, round 7.**

**The prompts I used were: Higher Love, James Vincent McMorrow (original by Steve Winwood), "There's nothing good about goodnight when it means goodbye." ―Jeff Thomas, "breathless"**


	18. You Can Do It

**This is the first time I'm trying something like this. Do let me know what you thought!**

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><p>Dear me,<p>

I wasn't sure if that's how you write a salutation in a letter to yourself. I could ask Hermione but she's downstairs with Ron at the moment and I'm already fighting the urge to interrupt them the way Ron interrupted Ginny and me.

No, I'm not writing this because of the lack of company. I'm writing this because I might die. Worse, Ron and Hermione might die. Ginny might die. If Dumbledore isn't with us anymore, no one is even as safe as they were last year. I've finally realised that it's a very real possibility that I might not be coming back to the Burrow – it might not even be standing by the end of this year.

This isn't a thought that's just hit me. It's something I've been thinking about for a long time now – but you obviously know that since I am you. It's just that…well no one else can understand what that feels like – to feel like you're losing hope. People tell you it's going to be okay and everything will be fine, but let's face it. There isn't any guarantee that anything will be fine. It's times like these that make me think twice about what I'm about to do. Is it really worth it to go on the run, taking my best friends, putting everyone in danger… Surely there's got to be another way? Dumbledore can't be the only person who knew how to defeat Voldemort?

The only other person who ever heard me think like this – like I'm about to give up – is Ginny. You remember that time by the lake, two days after Dumbledore's death. The thing is, Ginny isn't going to be around to comfort me and remind me to hang in there. Ron and Hermione aren't going to understand what this feels like. So on those days when you feel like turning yourself in to Voldemort, I know you need someone to tell you to keep holding on, to hang in there for just a bit longer. And who better to do that job than yourself?

Remember all the people you're doing this for. You aren't doing this only because some prophecy says so. You're doing this to honour them. Mum. Dad. Sirius. Moody. Dumbledore. All the people who gave up their lives so you could have yours. You can't just give up. What would you say when you met them in heaven (or wherever wizards go when they die)? They didn't just die so you could turn yourself in when you felt too tired to go on. They made it through days and months and years of hardship. Sirius rotted in a cell in Azkaban for thirteen years. Dumbledore was dying for a year and he's been resisting Voldemort for years but he still tried his best to make sure you knew what you needed to do. As for Mum and Dad…I don't think I need to remind you of what they faced.

Think of the Weasleys. They didn't have to be in this war. They didn't fight the last time. They're in this because of you. They're risking their home, their children and themselves so that you can finally help them live free of fear. They gave you a home and a family. The least you could do to repay them is to keep Ron safe.

Ron and Hermione. They're sitting in a cramped tent with you for no other reason than that you're their friend. They didn't have to do this. Hermione could be abroad. Ron could be with his family. But they won't leave you to do this alone. You can't let them do it alone either. If you give up, that's not fair to them, is it? They didn't put their lives in danger just so they could watch you die. Sure, times seem bad, but that doesn't mean you can just say, "Right, I'm done here," and walk away. They've never walked away from you no matter how bad things got.

Remus. He's practically the only link to your parents that you have left. He's just married Tonks. If you give up now, he'll never have a shot at happiness. He's lived a sad and lonely life for thirteen years because your parents died to protect you. In a way, he lost his best friends because of you. You can't take away his one chance at finding love again. He deserves to have a full life with little children running around and a house with Tonks in the sunshine. He shouldn't have to hide in the shadows anymore.

Sure, at this point you've probably worked yourself up into a bit of a rage and you're thinking, "I didn't ask any of them to do any of this for me! Why should I have to be so unselfish and noble all the time? Why can't I just be weak for once and walk away? Don't I deserve to get what I want too?"

This is the point when you should think about the only thing that you really do want.

Ginny.

If you don't care about anyone else, I know you can't deny that you love her. If you give up now, there are two things that could happen. One, someone else might actually be able to kill Voldemort and she might find love with another guy. Two, she could die.

No, just because you – we? I? This is really beginning to get confusing - both die, doesn't make it a happy ending.

Ginny deserves to live. You deserve happiness. They can both happen only if you manage to defeat Voldemort and go back to her. Can't you imagine it? The sight of her walking down the aisle in a white dress, her eyes shining only for you. A house in a little village – maybe even back in Godric's Hollow. Ginny holding out your first little child to you. Watching her teach your children how to tie their shoes and a little later, all of you having Quidditch matches out in the yard. Standing at King's Cross with your arm around her as you wave off your last child to school. Growing old together and looking forward to your grandchildren's visits. If you thought those hours in Hogwarts spent discreetly on the grounds were good, imagine a lifetime with Ginny. Do you want to miss this? Do you want to give in to this one moment of weakness and forgo all of this?

You do deserve to get what you want. Unfortunately, that means you have to square your shoulders and keep going. There's no other way. He has to die.

No one willingly fights a war for themselves. They do it so that all the people they love can be happy.

You can do it Harry. You have to do it. For yourself. For them. And who knows? You might even end up on a Chocolate Frog card if you get through this!

You will be happy but only if you shake off the despair you're feeling right now. Just think of that future with Ginny. You're going to make it.

Everything will be okay.

Yours,

Harry

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><p><strong>Please review :) This was for round 6 of QLFC, reserve for Captain of the Magpies.<strong>


	19. Centre of Attention

**So, it's been a while since I've written anything, leave alone fanfiction. Forgive the slight rustiness.**

**Please leave me a review with your thoughts :)**

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><p>There was a loud click, a puff of purple smoke and a bright flash. The photographer held up a hand to indicate that everyone should remain seated. Another flash, puff and click later, he gave everyone the thumbs up and the Slytherin Quidditch team sighed with relief, rubbing their aching jaws.<p>

"Well done, everyone, very well done indeed," Slughorn's amiable voice was loud in the clamour as everyone moved away in search of food. Only one small, slight boy with dark hair and bronze eyes remained beside him.

"Thank you sir," Regulus Black said eagerly. "The Quidditch Cup is as good as ours now. We've put together a very strong side." He had been basking in the admiration of the house all year. As one of their youngest Seekers – at a mere twelve years of age - he had won both matches they had played so far and had proved to be quick and bright in all his studies as well. He loved being the centre of attention. Ever since he had been born, his family had lavished him with adoration and he had done everything he could to please them. He loved praise and looked eagerly at Slughorn for some comment about his good (spectacular really, the way he snatched the Snitch right from under the Ravenclaw Seeker's nose if he did say so himself) performance that evening.

"Yes indeed, Regulus. With your skills, the final game should not prove to be very challenging." Regulus' smile grew wider at the longed-for compliment. "Wouldn't you agree, Severus?" Slughorn continued, beaming as he pulled a black haired boy from the crowd to join them.

Snape looked startled at the sudden question. "Oh, yes, yes of course, Professor."

"I wouldn't be so sure," said a smirking redheaded girl who had been with Severus and had stopped to join the conversation. "We've got a pretty strong team this year."

"Gryffindor hasn't won the cup in a long time, Lily m'dear. Your glory days have long been over," Slughorn said with a grin.

"We won the last game 320 – 40, if I recall correctly," Lily said loyally. "We've got some of the best players in the school."

"I must admit you've got some fine players," Slughorn conceded. "Sirius Black and James Potter for starters. Those boys will get high up fast, the talent they've got."

Regulus snorted suddenly. Lily glanced at him with slight distaste. She noted the petulant mouth, the over-eager look, the signs of someone wanting – needing – to be the centre of attention all the time and was suddenly reminded of Petunia who had looked much the same every time Lily was home for the holidays. "You have something to say?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

"They're nothing but a bunch of troublemakers. They're not serious enough to get anywhere," he said, rather prudishly.

"They're highly intelligent and talented." Lily hoped to goodness no one was around to hear her sticking up for Black and Potter of all people. But this _was_ a matter of house pride.

"They're bottom of the class, they only fool around and get into detention all the time. That's probably why they're not here right now," Regulus replied.

Lily shifted uncomfortably. True, Potter and Black _were_ in detention at that very moment. "There's a highly intelligent Muggle who once said 'The true sign of intelligence is not knowledge, but imagination.' So what if they don't ace class tests? Some of their pranks are truly brilliant. And they _are _good at academics too if that's so important to you. They do quite well in exams too."

"Now, now, we're only having a little friendly rivalry. If only Sirius had been in Slytherin too. We'd have been quite unstoppable," Slughorn said amicably. "I'll leave you lot to chat. I need to liven up this party a little." He winked at the group and departed.

Regulus snorted again. "He wouldn't have made the team in Slytherin. My parents always say he's not much good at anything."

"Oh and you're the golden boy, I expect?" Lily snapped.

"Yes, I am," Regulus puffed up his chest proudly. "My parents are incredibly proud of me. I have proper ambitions." He looked at her derisively. "Not that a _Muggleborn_ like you would understand."

Lily looked like she wanted to slap him but Severus grabbed her arm. "Maybe we should get something to eat. See you later Black." He dragged her away hurriedly but he looked at Regulus with interest over his shoulder. The boy was already flitting off to another large group of older students and trying to worm his way into the conversation.

A few hours later, three young teens skulked in the shadows of the already dimly lit room, watching Regulus. The young Seeker was still trying to attach himself to large groups, to be popular and seen and heard and admired. "I'm telling you, the boy's got potential," Snape said. The party was coming to a close and the crowd had dwindled to a gang of Slytherins who were still celebrating their team's victory.

"He's a kid, Snape. Are you sure?" Rabastan looked doubtful.

"He comes from a family of Blacks. We know they're supporters."

"Have you seen Sirius?"

Snape shook his head. "Look, trust me on this one. Regulus is going to be a good addition to our little…club. He's young; he's got a head full of ideas about the Dark Lord's rule. Plus, he's talented and he hates his brother. You can use someone like him."

Avery nodded in agreement. "He's got a point, Rabastan. Didn't you hear him dropping hints about his allegiances all evening? Add to that the way he looked at Snape's Mudblood – such disdain." He smirked at Snape who flushed.

"She means nothing to me. She's just hanging on to me for company," he said quickly.

"For your sake, we all hope so. It wouldn't do for one of our kind to associate with filth like that," Avery said smoothly.

Rabastan nodded. "Very well. Let's take this boy under our wing then. What do you suggest we start him off with, Snape?"

"Oh, anything that makes him the centre of attention. Trust me, he loves that."

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><p><strong>And that, is how Regulus Black came to be part of the Death Eater gang. The photo at the beginning, is what I imagine might have turned up in his room for Harry to find later.<strong>

**This was for round 5 of the QLFC. I'm a reserve Chaser 1 for the Ballycastle Bats. Word count of the story is about 1030 words. The prompts were:**

**1. (quote) 'The true sign of intelligence is not knowledge, but imagination.' - Albert Einstein**

**2. (word) detention**

**10. (colour) bronze**

**CHASER 1: Write about your team's chosen character in their 2nd Year**


	20. Looking for Treasure

**So this is for the QLFC Little League as the Slytherin beater 1. My prompts are "chasing" and "so...what exactly is that?"**

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><p>"Have you ever wanted to go on an adventure?"<p>

James looked up from his Potions homework, surprised. He and Lily had been good friends for over half a year now and they were currently sitting in the Hogwarts library where she was helping him with his work. He had been writing a long essay and she had curled up in the opposite chair with a book while she waited for him to finish.

"Erm what exactly do you mean, Evans?" he asked, confused.

She traced the title of her book with a finger, considering her reply. James watched her index finger move carefully over the T in "Tales of Beedle the Bard". His thoughts drifted for a moment to how it would feel if the same finger was moving across his cheek just as slowly or better yet, tracing his lips instead. He pulled himself away from his wandering thoughts as she spoke again, somewhat hesitantly.

"You know. Like in these stories. Muggle stories about magic usually have a prince who battles ogres and evil wizards and witches or who goes on brave quests to find magic cures for ailing kings and queens and even in these wizarding fairy tales, there's so much action like with the Fountain of Fair Fortune story. I'm in my sixth year already and I've not had one adventure of the kind despite reading stories like this all the time when I was a kid. In fact, one of the things I thought I'd get to do at Hogwarts was slay a dragon." She blushed sheepishly at the half bemused, half amused look James was giving her. "Never mind. I shouldn't have brought it up. It's silly. Are you nearly done with that essay?"

James grinned. "I thought my mates and I provide enough action in your life already," he said, wiggling his eyebrows.

She rolled her eyes and pulled his parchment towards herself. "I should never have mentioned it to you, of all people. You've grown up with magic; you wouldn't get it." She proceeded to read his essay but James continued looking between her and the story book on the table. Perhaps, he could make her beloved adventure happen.

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><p>"Lily! Look what I found!"<p>

Lily looked up from her toast to see James waving a very old looking piece of parchment in her face. "What's that?" she asked.

"I was going through some books on the properties of rare herbs for the Potions quiz Slughorn promised next week and I found this tucked in one of them. It's a treasure map for something hidden right here at Hogwarts," James said excitedly.

Lily looked at the rather elaborate map but raised a skeptical eyebrow. "Do you really expect me to believe this? It could just be one of your pranks."

James gave her a hurt look. "Hey, I really did find this. I didn't make it up myself. Come on, Lily, let's go find it. The castle is mostly empty anyway, since it's Easter. It'll be fun!" He looked at her doubtful expression and added slyly, "It could be that adventure you wanted to have last week."

A small smile crept onto her face. "How do I know it's not a prank and you'll not push me into a pit of dragon dung at the end?"

"I'll come with you. You can drag me in and rub it all in my face if you like. But only if that should happen of course," he added quickly.

Lily bit her lip and finally relented. "Fine. We'll go on an adventure." She smiled at him.

James grinned widely. "Brilliant! I'll meet you in the common room at seven tonight! This is much more fun in the dark when you have to sneak around! Bye Lily!"

At exactly seven, James was waiting at the portrait hole. He was grinning enthusiastically at the prospect of the evening and Lily couldn't help returning the broad smile herself. It was going to be just like all those books that had made up a large part of her childhood. James led her out of the common room and she pulled out her wand.

"Whoa, what's that for?" he asked.

"Disillusionment Charm. We don't want to get caught right?" Lily asked, confused.

James shook his head. "Lily, Lily, Lily. You have so much to learn about escapades. It's the risk that makes it fun! It's too easy to sneak around undetected."

Lily bit her lip but nodded and stowed her wand back into her pocket. "Come on," James said. He led her down two floors and into a secret passage behind a tapestry. He pulled out his wand and shone it over the map. "So, it looks like the treasure is beside this white tree in the west of the Forbidden Forest. I'd say going past the lake would be our best bet. What do you think?"

"I agree. We should probably sneak behind the greenhouses just in case anyone's looking out. Once we get into the trees, we should be okay," Lily said.

James nodded. "Come on, I know a passage that comes out at the corner of the castle wall closest to the greenhouses." They slipped out of the passage they were hiding in and James led the way down the stairs. Twice, they had to duck into an alcove behind a suit of armour or into a broom cupboard and stay still while a teacher or a ghost went by. Once, they narrowly escaped Peeves thanks to James remembering a secret cavity in the wall that only opened up if you stomped on the foot of a suit of armour. The downside was that the armour howled realistically like someone in pain and they had to run down the passage at top speed before anyone else got to the scene.

They finally made it to the grounds and James looked at Lily. "We'll have to sprint for the greenhouses and hope no one sees us." She gave him a brilliant smile. "Race you!" she said and took off down the slope. James stared after her for a moment and then grinned and ran down, chasing her. He grabbed her hand and pulled her behind the greenhouse as they stopped to catch their breath. He looked down at her, marvelling at how beautiful she looked even when she was hot and sweaty and flushed. There was a glow to her cheeks and her eyes were bright enough to practically shine in the moonlight.

Lily suddenly realised that she was holding James' hand and dropped it quickly. "Come on," she said, lighting her wand and surveying the wall of trees in front of them with its light. "This should take us to the west of the Forest."

James nodded and followed her into the darkness. The moon was only half full and its light was bright in the beginning but as they went deeper, they couldn't see much more than the narrow strips of ground illuminated by the wandlight. An owl hooted in the trees and something howled in the distance. Even though he had been in the forest several times, James felt uncomfortable and jumpy not being in his animal form. He felt something brush his hand and jumped violently, swinging his wand around only to find Lily giving him a sheepish look. "Would you mind if I walked a bit closer?" she asked, her blush apparent even in the dim light. "It's a bit creepy."

James smiled reassuringly. "Don't worry, nothing in the forest should bother us unless we bother it first." He walked closer to her, his hand brushing hers from time to time.

"What about if it's hungry?" Lily asked.

"Well the creatures don't generally attack humans. Only the more dangerous ones do that but I don't think we need to go deep enough to find anything that scary."

"How do you know so much about the Forest anyway?" Lily asked. "Do you make a habit of roaming around in here after dark?"

James smiled. "No, only when the moon is bright enough."

Lily opened her mouth to respond when a loud crack split the silence. They both spun to the right, wands high and at the ready. "Don't be afraid," James said. "It's probably just a Thestral or something." He squinted at the trees, trying to make out a shape in the darkness. Another crack sounded from their left and they swivelled to that side. They stood there for a few minutes, waiting with bated breath. Finally, James lowered his wand. "It's been ten minutes. If anything wanted to attack us, it would have by now. It was probably just a Thestral or something passing by."

Lily wiped the sweat off her forehead with her sleeve. "Yeah, that was probably just it." She leaned against a tree. "Adventuring is a bit scary."

"Well you didn't expect all the princes in your books to have it easy, did you?" James said, smiling slightly. "You're doing pretty well. I thought you'd be terrified of the Forest or worse, of breaking the rules and sneaking out so late here."

Lily thumped her foot against the tree and avoided James' eyes. "I…well I've always been a little jealous of your easy-going ways. You have so much fun and I have to admit I've always wanted to be like you a bit more, you know? Take a few risks, be liked by everyone…things like that. That's partly why I wanted to do this too. I want to have a memory of something dangerous like this before I leave school."

"Lily," James started when something fell through the air and landed on the ground. They both looked at it curiously when Lily felt something sharp cut through her arm.

"Ouch!" she yelled, jumping away from the tree. A loud chittering started all around them. "That's a Bowtruckle nest," James said, alarmed. He shone his wand on the trees around them and the bark seemed to be moving. They realised then that it was a whole swarm of Bowtruckles climbing the tree trunks.

Lily swore. "It must have been on the edge or something. I was pounding that tree with my foot; that's what probably dislodged the nest." She looked at her arm and swore again at the blood streaming from the wound the Bowtruckles' claws had caused. The tiny creatures began to swarm all around them and James and Lily backed off. "Do you think we should run?" Lily asked quietly.

James nodded. "Ready? Run!" They dashed into the trees, avoiding the swipes from the creatures' long claws. They ran deeper into the forest until they finally came to a clearing. Lily looked around, shining her wand on the trees and ground. "Is that…snow?"

"In April? It hasn't snowed recently," James said, panting heavily.

"So…what exactly is that?" Lily moved closer to the trees with her hand outstretched.

James gasped suddenly, realising where they were. "Lily step back, right now." Something in his voice made Lily move closer to him immediately.

"James?" she said, sounding slightly afraid. "What is this stuff?"

He turned around. "Look, there's a gap between the trees. Let's head for it, slowly and quietly, okay?" he murmured. "And stay close to me."

"Okay," Lily replied. She moved with him towards the gap in the trees. They were almost there when something large dropped to the ground behind them. They turned around just in time. "Duck!" yelled James and pushed Lily to the ground as a spurt of white webbing sailed over their heads. Lily registered a scuttling noise and a furious clicking and then James' hand was around hers, pulling her towards the trees. "Run!" he yelled.

"Acromantula?" she screamed. "Really?"

"I didn't think we were that far in. It must be a smaller web of some sort of reclusive spider," James yelled back. He swore and threw a Stunner over his shoulder in the direction of the lair they had just escaped from. The scuttling of the giant spider was still loud.

"Let's cast our spells together," Lily said. They both yelled "Stupefy" aiming in the direction of the lair and were rewarded with the noises of something hitting a tree. They ran as fast as they could, without stopping and finally burst out of the forest and into the moonlight, near the pumpkin patch behind Hagrid's hut.

They stood near the edge of the forest, gasping for breath. "We should have found the tree," James said, once he had recovered. "We really should have found the tree."

"It's okay. I think I had enough adventure for one night. We can find it in the morning," Lily said.

"No, the treasure won't be very good in the morning."

Lily stared at James. "What on earth does that mean?"

"Please don't be mad, Lily. Remus and I made up that map. I told him what you said in the library and got him to help me out. He was supposed to put a bag full of pastries shaped like dragons so that you could 'slay' dragons. I'm so sorry it turned out like this. You were never supposed to be in any danger! It was those stupid Bowtruckles. I lost track of where we were going. I didn't even realise we went that far into the forest." He looked at her helplessly. "I never meant for you to get hurt. I wanted you to have fun."

Lily stared at him for a minute and then smiled. "Thank you. That was really nice of you."

He looked at her, surprised. "You're not mad?"

"Well, I'm still recovering from the shock but no, I don't think I'm mad at you. In fact, I quite enjoyed this. You put in a lot of effort to do something that was important to me when you didn't have to." She smiled sweetly at him and held his hand. "Thank you."

"We should take a picture tomorrow. We'll still go and pose in front of that tree. I won't lose my way in the daylight," James blurted.

"Yes," Lily agreed. "A memory of our first adventure together."

James smiled and nodded. He didn't say it out loud, but he sincerely hoped by the way she held his hand all the way back up to the castle that it would be the first of many adventures they would have together – that perhaps, _she_ would be the treasure he would find.

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><p><strong>Let me know what you thought!<strong>


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